LONDON - Britain's top share index lost 0.6 percent, snapping a three-session winning streak with investors turning cautious ahead of today's Bank of England monetary policy decision and tomorrow's US jobs report. The FTSE 100 closed at 5,253.15 points, down 30.16 or 0.57 percent.
@MARKET ROUNDUP:EUROFIRST
EUROPE - European shares fell, snapping a three-day rally as investors worried about the economic health of the euro zone's peripheral countries, with banks falling and miners tracking metal prices lower.
The FTSEurofirst 300 index of leading European shares closed down 0.6 percent at 1,020.99 points after earlier being up as much as 1,031.39.
@MARKET ROUNDUP:EUROmarkets
FRANKFURT - The DAX index ended at 5,672.09 points, down 37.57 or 0.66 percent.
PARIS - The CAC-40 index closed at 3,793.47 points, down 18.66 or 0.49 percent.
ZURICH - The Swiss market index closed at 6,553.8 points, up 3.68 or 0.06 percent.
MILAN - The FT IT All Share index closed at 22,696.96 points, down 245.39 or 1.07 percent.
@MARKET ROUNDUP:nikkei
TOKYO - Japan's Nikkei average rose 0.3 percent as exporters gained on strong US data, but a drop in shares of Toyota Motor Corp. weighed after its recall woes hit its US sales. The Nikkei rose 33.24 points to 10,404.33.
@MARKET ROUNDUP:hang seng
HONG KONG - Shares in Hong Kong and China rose as Chinese banks gained on easing worries about Beijing's credit tightening steps, while resources rose on strong oil and metals prices. The Hang Seng Index closed up 2.22 percent, or 449.9 points at 20,722.08.
@MARKET ROUNDUP:asx
SYDNEY - Australian stocks rose 0.9 percent, buoyed by results from key US industrial and consumer companies and the latest profit upgrade ahead of the Australian results season. The S&P/ASX 200 index picked up 42.5 points to end at 4,647.8, adding to Tuesday's 1.8 percent gain.
@MARKET ROUNDUP:south africa
JOHANNESBURG - South African stocks ended slightly higher, for a second days of gains, led by retailers, but the rand dipped after the dollar firmed also sending government bonds weaker. The All-share index closed at 26,926.46 points, up 114.21 or 0.43 percent. The All Gold index closed at 2,231.02 points, down 11.27 or 0.5 percent, while the Industrial index closed at 21,076.94 points, up 108.67 or 0.52 percent.
