Major European indexes are expected to open down by as much as 1 percent on Wednesday after U.S. stocks ended below intra-day highs, bookmakers said.
The FTSE and the DAX are both seen opening down as much as 0.9 percent, while the CAC 40 will open 1.2 percent lower, boookmakers said.
The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 rose 3.4 percent in the previous session boosted by investor Warren Buffett's offer to reinsure $800 billion in municipal debt risk from the
top three bond insurers.
U.S. markets ended sharply below intra-day highs, hit by technology stocks, while Asian markets rose slightly on Wednesday.