Europe shares pare gains as bank rally fizzles

LONDON, July 16 - European shares gave up their early advance on Wednesday as an initial rebound in banking shares fizzled out, although a rise in mining stocks helped stem the slide in the broader market.

By 0743 GMT the FTSEurofirst 300 index <.FTEU3> of top European shares was up 0.1 percent at 1,110.93 points, having risen earlier by as much as 0.8 percent.

Among advancers, Rio Tinto <RIO.L> rose 1.3 percent after a trading update, while BHP Billiton <BLT.L> was up 1.1 percent.

Banks accounted for a 1.7 points' worth of declines in the index, compared with a net positive contribution of 1.6 points at 0725 GMT.

Financials were the largest drag on the market, as UBS <UBSN.VX>, BNP Paribas <BNPP.PA> and Societe Generale <SOGN.PA> dropped between 1.4 and 2.8 percent, while among insurers Axa <AXAF.PA> and Allianz <ALVG.DE> were down 1.6-3 percent.

• Email Story
• IM Story
• Printable View
• Blog This

Recommend this article

Related Articles: Business

• No Olympic hangover for Chinese economy: expertsAFP - 57 minutes ago
• NASA eyes buying Japan's cargo spacecraft - paperReuters - 1 hour 13 minutes ago
• Brazil, Colombia boost trade tiesAP - 1 hour 15 minutes ago
• Wal-Mart's fashion show previews back-to-schoolReuters - 2 hours 5 minutes ago
• China warns Exxon over Vietnam deal-newspaperReuters - 2 hours 11 minutes ago