Frankfurt

Shares slipped as bank stocks began to unwind some of Monday's sharp gains.

At 1044 GMT the Xetra Dax was 28.23 points lower at 4996.28.

Dealers said share prices were beginning to fall back and trading volumes decrease as the market hit resistance between 5050 and 5100 points.

They described the midmorning slide as a more or less inevitable reaction to yesterday's advances.

Traders also cited the damping effect of Standard & Poor's putting Deutsche Bank on credit watch "with negative implications" in response to the announcement of a possible merger with Bankers Trust.

Paris

French stocks managed to hold on to early gains, but were off initial highs as the Dow Jones looked set to suffer profit-taking on its opening.

At 1044 GMT the Cac 40 was 19.1 points higher at 3864.91.