Europe makes hasty retreat

A trader takes share orders at the Frankfurt Stock Exchange

LONDON, England (CNN) -- European markets ended mostly lower on Tuesday after early gains were wiped out by a Wall Street retreat, led by the chip and software sectors.

London's FTSE 100 ended 0.2 percent lower at 5,197.2 and the CAC 40 blue chip index in Paris was down just slightly at 4,399.2, while Frankfurt's electronically traded Xetra Dax was flat at 4,997.08 in late trading (the German market was set to close at 1900 GMT).

The pan-European FTSE Eurotop 300, a broader index of the region's largest stocks, lost 0.1 percent, with the computer and information technology sub-indices leading the declines.

The media sector was among the gainers on Tuesday, led by Vivendi Universal (PEX). It closed up 3.6 percent -- but off its highs for the session -- to 33.10 euros after a French newspaper reported that board members were considering a plan to split up the media, telecom and utility conglomerate after its stock plunged about 47 percent since the start of the year. Vivendi declined to comment on the report. (more)

However, EMI (EMI), the world's third-largest music group, was the biggest loser in London, falling 6.6 percent. Earlier on Tuesday, it posted a loss of almost £200 million ($290 million) for the year ending March 31. The company had said pretax profit would decline as it lays off staff and cuts the number of artists on its roster. (more)

KPN, the Dutch telecom operator, ended 3 percent lower -- despite notching up early gains -- after falling in early trading. It said on Tuesday its loss narrowed as it cut jobs and reduced debt. (more)

BNP Paribas (PBNP), the euro zone's biggest bank, rose 0.7 percent in Paris. It said it plans to continue its acquisition spree as part of a three-year plan to lift profits and consolidate its operations. France's largest bank will spend between 5 billion and 9 billion euros ($4.6 - 8.28 billion) by 2005 on acquisitions, most likely in Europe. (more)

German chemicals group Degussa (FDHA), was among the top gainers in Frankfurt, rising 3.5 percent in late Frankfurt trading after utility E.ON (FEON) agreed late on Monday to transfer control of the company to coal group RAG as part of its bid to acquire gas company Ruhrgas.

Marks & Spencer (MKS), Britain's top clothing retailer, slipped 3.2 percent after saying pretax profit rose 31 percent to £646.7 million ($945 million) for the year ending March 31. (more)

In Amsterdam the AEX index slipped 0.6 percent, while Milan's MIB30 index rose 0.1 percent and the SMI in Zurich gained 0.3 percent.