* FTSEurofirst 300 down 0.9 percent
* Miners, financials among top decliners
* Worries over Irish debt, China monetary tightening
By Atul Prakash
LONDON, Nov 16 (Reuters) - European shares retreated on
Tuesday, led lower by miners, on concerns about Ireland's debt
ahead of a key meeting of euro zone finance ministers and
renewed talk of further policy tightening in China.
At 0929 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 <> index of top
European shares was down 0.9 percent at 1,102.19 points after
closing 0.8 percent higher in the previous session.
Miners topped the decliners, as key base metals prices fell
on fresh concerns that China, one of the world's top commodity
consumers, could further tighten monetary policy.
The STOXX 600 Basic Resources index <.SXPP> slipped 2.3
percent, while BHP Billiton <BLT.L>, Antofagasta <ANTO.L>, Rio
Tinto <RIO.L> and Xstrata <XTA.L> fell 1.9 to 2.9 percent.
"We have certainly seen an increase in uncertainty and the
focus has been on Europe and on what's happening with Ireland
and the peripheral countries. All eyes are looking towards the
Brussels meeting of EU finance ministers," said Keith Bowman,
equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.
Euro zone finance ministers are expected to discuss on
Tuesday the future euro zone crisis resolution mechanism, which
Germany wants to start from 2013, replacing the 440 billion euro
European Financial Stability Facility set up after Greece sought
help in May. []
The Irish government said it has been holding talks on how
to provide stability for its banks and finances but denied a
state rescue was needed to stop its problems spilling into other
countries.
FINANCIALS SLIP
Financial shares, which often derive strength from solid
macroeconomic environment, were on the back foot, with the STOXX
600 banking index <.SX7P> slipping 1.4 percent. Standard
Chartered <STAN.L>, Credit Agricole <CAGR.PA>, Bankinter
<BKT.MC> and Natixis <CNAT.PA> fell 1.7 to 2.6 percent.
"There is also some degree of uncertainty with the U.S. as
well. We saw some mark up in treasury yields yesterday, with a
group of economists questioning the Federal Reserve's QE2
programme."
European shares climbed to a two-year high a week ago on the
U.S. Federal Reserve's further stimulus plans, but doubts about
whether the Fed would ultimately buy the $600 billion worth of
bonds it had promised has put some pressure on equities.
New York Federal Reserve President William Dudley defended
on Tuesday the controversial bond-buying programme, saying the
Fed was not expressly seeking to devalue the dollar, while he
cautioned that the programme was unlikely to generate a spurt of
growth. []
Among individual movers, German chipmaker Infineon
<IFXGn.DE> rose 1.2 percent after reporting strong
fourth-quarter results and said it plans to give back cash to
shareholders for the first time in a decade. []
British luxury goods group Burberry <BRBY.L> rose 0.2
percent after beating forecasts with a 49 percent jump in
first-half profit as fewer markdowns and better management of
stock combined with an already-reported rise in sales.
Across Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 <>, Germany's DAX
<>, France's CAC 40 <>, Italy's MIB <.FTMIB>, Spain's
IBEX 35 <> and Ireland's ISEQ <.ISEQ> fell 0.6 to 1.5
percent. The Thomson Reuters Peripheral Eurozone Countries Index
<.TRXFLDPIPU> was down 1.2 percent.
