(MENAFN- AFP) Shares in French nuclear giant Areva and British postal operator Royal Mail sank Wednesday in an otherwise calm day for European stocks, as the euro rose against the dollar.
London's benchmark FTSE 100 index slid percent to stand at 6,703.99 points in afternoon trading.
Frankfurt's DAX 30 gained 0.43 percent to 9,497.20 points and in Paris the CAC 40 added 0.26 percent to 4,273.35.
The European single currency increased to $1.2541 from $1.2537 late in New York on Tuesday.
Switzerland's SMI index briefly rose above the 9,000 mark during the trading session, hitting its highest level since the end of 2007.
In Paris, Areva shares tumbled more than 16 percent to 10.13 euros after the company suspended its financial outlook for the next two years.
The French government is reportedly considering injecting 2.0 billion euros into the company which is facing cash flow problems as interest in nuclear power has cooled since the March 2011 Fukushima catastrophe in Japan and its reactors under construction are hobbled by delays.
Royal Mail was the biggest faller on London's benchmark index after posting a drop in earnings as its parcels division faces fierce competition from US online giant Amazon, which is doing its own deliveries.
Royal Mail shed 8.4 percent to 429.70 pence "after it warned that growth in parcels would slow thanks to Amazon and its competitive delivery network", noted Brenda Kelly, chief market strategist at IG traders.
"We can expect more of the same from Royal Mail, while the expectation of hitting targets for the full year hinges on a good Christmas and thus the risk of disappointment is high," she added.
European stock markets were largely "taking a breather after two consecutive days of substantial gains," said Markus Huber, senior analyst at brokers Peregrine & Black.
Later on Wednesday, attention will shift to the US central bank, which publishes minutes of its last meeting that saw the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) stick to its ultra-low interest rate policy.
"There is only a limited amount of economic data scheduled for release today with the FOMC minutes later tonight likely to take centre-stage... In the short-term markets are somewhat overbought which makes for the occasional round of profit-taking likely," said Huber.
At its meeting in October, the Fed also ended its quantitative easing stimulus programme, after six years of pumping easy money into the US economy via asset purchases to shore up growth.
Investors will be looking for hints just when the Fed will begin raising interest next year.
The Bank of England on Wednesday revealed that its policymakers had voted 7-2 in favour of keeping its main interest rate at 0.50 percent against a background of low inflation and steady growth in Britain.
- Wall Street retreats -
Wall Street stocks retreated from record highs in opening trade Wednesday as analysts were exercising caution ahead of the release of Fed minutes.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 0.16 percent to 17,659.37 points after the first five minutes of trading.
The broad-based S&P 500 shed 0.24 percent to 2,046.80, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index fell 0.35 percent to 4,686.21.
Asian markets slipped Wednesday despite record closing highs on Wall Street on Tuesday, with Tokyo stocks retreating 0.32 percent after Japan's central bank decided against fresh monetary easing even as the country tipped back into recession.
Sydney dropped 0.57 percent, Shanghai lost 0.22 percent and Hong Kong fell 0.66 percent. Seoul ended flat.
In foreign exchange deals, the euro slid to 80.05 British pence from 80.18 late on Tuesday in New York. The British pound firmed to $1.5692 from $1.5633.
On the London Bullion Market, the price of gold climbed to $1,200.75 an ounce from $1,192.75 late on Tuesday.
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