Shares in Frankfurt paused for breath after the three-session surge that followed the resignation of Oskar Lafontaine, the former German finance minister, and the Xetra Dax index lost 28.34 to 5,062.59.
Siemens put on 70 cents to €61.29 after the industrial giant said its semiconductor earnings had improved significantly and that its semiconductor operations would become a separate company from April 1st.
BMW climbed €16.50 to €623 ahead of results due today. DaimlerChrysler lost €1.40 to €84.31 on profit-taking after recent gains. Lufthansa put on €1.10 to €21.60 after being named by a Thai government official as one of at least three big suitors expected to bid for a stake in that country's airline.
Dresdner lost €1.75 to €38.05 on profit-taking after recent strength on the back of BNP's bid for Societe Generale and Paribas. Insurer AMB jumped to a high of €114 as Morgan Stanley Dean Witter raised its recommendation to a strong buy. The share pulled back to close €3.05 higher at €108.
Paris ended a uninspiring day 0.4 per cent lower after an early fall on Wall Street sent the CAC-40 into the red. The blue-chip index closed 16.34 off to 4,170.01.
Renault tumbled €2.07 or 6.2 per cent to €31.40 after it said late on Tuesday that it would seek a 35 per cent stake in Nissan. Rival Peugeot also eased, losing €3 to €135.50. Air Liquide fell back €7 or 5 per cent to €134, more than paring its gain on Tuesday. High-tech shares turned in a good performance, with Cap Gemini up €4.10 to €146.20 and STMicroelectronics posting a hefty €4.70 gain to €88.70 after Merrill Lynch upgraded its recommendation for the stock.
Amsterdam ended a shade lower after the AEX index failed to breach resistance at 543, retreating 0.67 to 539.97 in late trading.
KPN Telecom NV closed €2.95 or 7.3 per cent lower to €37.50 after posting positive 1998 results, but saying the outlook for 1999 had darkened, blaming measures by the Dutch telecom regulator.
Madrid was dragged down by weakness in bank issues. The general index conceded 7.45 or 0.8 per cent to 897.34. Banks came under pressure after Argentaria and BBV denied they had plans for a merger.
Both banks retreated 2.1 per cent with BBV shedding 30 cents to €14.13 while Argentaria lost 49 cents to €22.97. Banco Santander was down 35 cents to €18.81 and BCH fell 22 cents to €11.27.
Helsinki under-performed the rest of Europe, with an early fall on Wall Street weighing on sentiment. The HEX index gave up 70.14 or 1.11 per cent to 6,254.67.
Ferry operator Neptun Maritime lost some of its sharp Tuesday gains, ending 12 cents or 4.8 per cent off at €2.36, posting one of the worst performances in Europe. Insurer Pohjola added €1.40 to €54 on speculation that Britain's Royal & Sun was considering bidding for a 25 per cent stake in the group.
