Major stock markets outside the United States ended on Tuesday.
The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares closed 0.9 percent lower at 1,053.93 points after rising to its highest in more than 15 months in the previous session. The index rose 26 percent in 2009 and has surged 63 percent since hitting a record low in March last year. Commodity shares were among the top decliners, with BHP Billiton, Antofagasta, Rio Tinto, Xstrata and ENRC down 1.8 to 3.3 percent, on concerns that Chinese monetary tightening could take some of the fizz out of the global economic recovery.