ET:European stocks firm; gains capped by eurozone worries
LONDON: European stocks edged higher Wednesday after morning losses but gains were capped by worries over whether eurozone leaders can really resolve the eurozone debt crisis amid differences over what to do.
Frankfurt's DAX 30 index of leading shares added 0.91 per cent to 5,678.85 points in early afternoon trade, London's FTSE 100 index was flat at 5,294.85 points and in Paris the CAC 40 advanced 0.39 per cent to 3,035.18.
Shares had soared on Tuesday, with London closing up 4.2 per cent and Paris almost 6.0 per cent, on fresh hopes that European leaders would get to grips with the debt crisis.
"European stock markets have been ... cutting short the recent stunning rally," Rabobank analyst Jane Foley said on Wednesday.
"Reality seems to have set in. Reports in the financial press today suggest the EU is split on how to solve the sovereign debt crisis, which may dampen investor sentiment."
The Financial Times said Greece's second bailout had run into trouble, with some eurozone members pushing for private creditors to take a bigger writedown on their Greek bond holdings.
The euro climbed to $1.3610 from $1.3590 in New York late Tuesday. The dollar fell to 76.47 yen from 76.84 yen.
Asian stock markets mostly rose on Wednesday but the gains were tentative due to the lack of concrete evidence of a eurozone plan, traders said.
In Greece, the government was hoping for a last-minute EU-IMF rescue amid fresh protests against austerity measures after Athens pledged a "superhuman" effort to stabilise its debt-stricken economy.
A mission from the EU, the IMF and the European Central Bank was expected in Athens by Thursday to resume an audit vital to the release of debt aid funds.
A key contributor to the rescue, Germany, was meanwhile scheduled to vote Thursday on expanding the scope and size of the EU's rescue fund -- the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF).
German Chancellor Angela Merkel met Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou on Tuesday, pledging every assistance as Athens implements tough austerity reforms.
