Frankfurt DAX: 3349.60 (-54.69)

German shares closed slightly lower in bourse trade yesterday as the softer dollar meant they were unable to follow the post bourse rally that occurred on Friday after Wall Street moved to higher levels. The DAX-30 index of leading German shares closed 8.30 points, or 0.25 per cent, down at 3350.99 in early dealings.

Paris CAC-40: 2,606.77 (-38.85)

The Paris Bourse nosedived yesterday as the CAC index shed 2.14 per cent. It was the Bourse's sharpest drop since 2.54 per cent on January 2nd. Paris was hit badly by the downturn in sentiment. Traders said investors were worried about the volatility of the markets.

Italy MIBTEL: 11,693 (-262)

The Italian market fell significantly across the board. Lire weakness and the plunge in bond futures prices led the falls and the Milan market fared worse than any other in Europe.