European shares end at one-week low

European shares fell to a one-week closing low on Wednesday, led by banks on concerns a stalemate in talks over the US debt ceiling could trigger a default or rating cut, and on persistent fears of contagion in the eurozone debt crisis. Banks were the worst performers, with the STOXX Europe 600 Banks index down 2.1 percent. The index has lost 4.9 percent in the past three-days when uncertainty over the debt talks in the United States intensified.
Italian banks were badly hit as Italian bond yields remained at high levels, with Intesa Sanpaolo and UniCredit down 5.1 percent and 4.3 percent, respectively. "Banks are under capitalised and the last thing they need is the United States to default," said Louise Cooper markets analyst at BGC Partners. "The eurozone crisis has not gone away and no on knows what is going to happen next." The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares provisionally closed down 1.1 percent at 1,088.84 points, having extended losses on weak US June durable goods data, and then again after the Wall Street open.