LONDON: European stocks mostly rose on Wednesday, but Frankfurt retreated from the key 10,000-points barrier following disappointing unemployment data.
Frankfurt's DAX 30 index of top shares slipped 0.02 percent to 9,939.17 points from Tuesday's record closing level, having risen as high as 9,957.87 during trading on Wednesday.
London's FTSE 100 index of top companies added 0.09 percent to 6,851.22 points, and after spending much of the afternoon in the red the CAC 40 in Paris eked out a gain of 0.04 percent to close at its highest point this year at 4,531.63 points.
Madrid rose 0.40 percent and Milan climbed 0.85 percent. The euro fell against the dollar, remaining under pressure on expectations the European Central Bank will soon announce fresh measures to combat deflation fears.
"With solid gains at the start of the week, it was time stocks in Europe had a rest and the weaker than expected German unemployment data today enabled it to happen," said analyst Jasper Lawler at CMC Markets UK.
Frankfurt had posted another record close on Tuesday and has been approaching 10,000 points, but failed to hold onto gains on Wednesday after data showed an unexpected jump in the number of German unemployed.
"No doubt the 10,000-point marker (for the DAX) is psychologically important," said analyst Markus Huber at brokerage Peregrine & Black.
"But what really is actually more important (is) that the German economy -- which is largely export orientated -- has so far managed to shrug off weakening growth in China and the United States," he told AFP.
Germany's jobless total rose unexpectedly in May, increasing by 24,000, but the unemployment rate held at a record low of 6.7 percent.
Investors seemed to ignore a survey of economic sentiment in the eurozone, which rose to its highest reading in nearly three years at 102.7 points on rising consumer confidence.
"May's rise in economic sentiment suggests that the eurozone's economic recovery should gradually gain momentum," said Zach Witton, an economist at Moody's Analytics.
Eurozone growth came in at a disappointing 0.2 percent in the first quarter, leading analysts to question whether the economic recovery was losing steam.
In company news, Scottish engineering firm Weir Group said it had abandoned a 4.6-billion-euro ($6.3-billion) takeover bid for Finnish peer Metso after its latest offer was rejected.
The news sent Glasgow-based Weir's share price sliding 0.8 percent to 2,584 pence in London.
GlaxoSmithKline shares sank 1.6 percent to 1,608.50 pence after Britain's Serious Fraud Office launched a probe into the drugs giant, which is already subject of a series of investigations into alleged staff corruption.
GSK already faces a slew of allegations in recent months in China, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Poland.
Shares in Alstom gained 1.1 percent to 29.00 euros as the takeover battle over the French power and rail group heated up, with US group General Electric promising to create 1,000 jobs in France according to a source. Germany's Siemens also plans to make a bid for Alstom.
Euro slides:
In foreign exchange deals on Wednesday, the euro slid to $1.3594 from $1.3634 late in New York on Tuesday.
The European single currency rose to 81.35 British pence from 81.09 pence. The British pound declined to $1.6711 from $1.6810 on Tuesday.
The price of gold fell to $1,263.50 an ounce from $1,275.50 Tuesday on the London Bullion Market.
Asian stock markets resumed their upward trend on Wednesday following another record-breaking close on Wall Street, where strong economic data buoyed sentiment as investors returned from a long weekend.
Hong Kong added 0.59 percent, Shanghai climbed 0.77 percent and Tokyo rose 0.24 percent in value.
US stocks were mostly down Wednesday following mixed earnings, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipping 0.13 percent to 16,653.37 points in midday trade.
The broad-based S&P 500 edged up 0.01 percent to 1,912.02, after closing at records the last two trading sessions. The tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index lost 0.09 percent to 4,233.39 points.
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