By Sarah Turner
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- European shares weakened in early trading on Wednesday, pulling back after posting solid gains in the previous session when worries about the health of the global economy abated. BHP Billiton (UK:BLT 1,887, -29.00, -1.51%) (BHP 70.21, -1.73, -2.40%) shares lost another 1.5%, extending a decline from Tuesday when fertilizer firm Potash said that it had rejected an offer from the mining giant. Other miners were also weak, along with metal futures and the euro, with Antofagasta (UK:ANTO 1,039, -8.00, -0.76%) shares down 1.1%. The U.K. FTSE 100 index declined 0.5% to 5,323.35, the German DAX index slipped 0.6% to 6,171.89 and the French CAC-40 index declined 0.6% to~ 3,639.88.
