European shares opened lower on Wednesday and core government bonds rose, with risk-shy investors awaiting fresh leads on growth prospects for the US economy amid renewed concerns about the debt crisis on Europe's periphery.
With European data thin on the ground, markets turned their focus across the Atlantic to durable goods data later in the day after comments on Tuesday by Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke fueled investor bets for further US monetary stimulus.
"The focus remains on growth indicators," said Lauren Rosborough, currency strategist at Societe Generale.
"To the extent that Bernanke has raised the ante on US growth indicators, US durable goods orders due for release this afternoon will be the market's focus." Consensus is for a 1.7% rise.
The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares was down 0.2% at 1,081.57.
MSCI's main global stock index was down 0.15% at 335.69, moving further away from its highest point since August of 338.28 hit on Tuesday.
With investor confidence about prospects for the euro zone remaining fragile ahead of a sale of medium-term Italian debt, the German Bund future extended Tuesday's gains, rising 16 basis points to 137.47.
Italian bonds were the euro zone's weakest performers on Tuesday after an auction of inflation-linked bonds.
"I think already the impact of the LTRO (three-year ECB refinancing operation) is beginning to wane," said one trader. "I think we are waiting for the next blow-up. I think Europe is massively complacent in thinking they have solved everything."
Spain and the European Commission denied media reports on Tuesday that Brussels had told the Madrid government to take an EU bailout to refinance the country's troubled banks.
The yen edged higher against the dollar and euro, supported by seasonal buying by Japanese exporters ahead of the end of their financial year.
The dollar fell 0.4% to 82.78 yen, while the euro eased 0.2% to 110.42 yen to inch further away from a 4-1/2 month high of 111.43 hit last week on trading platform EBS.
Brent crude prices slipped below $125 a barrel on the possibility of a release of strategic oil reserves by the US.
Copper slipped 0.8% to $8,452 a tonne as commodity investors took a cautious stance ahead of the US durable goods data.
