Equities in Europe edged lower in early trade Wednesday, with stock-exchange operators sliding after a tax proposal.
At the time of writing, Britain's FTSE fell 0.9%, France's CAC declined 0.8% while Germany's DAX erased 1.1%.
London Stock Exchange Group fell 3.6% while Deutsche Boerse AG was off 3.5% after Germany Premier Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy proposed a tax on financial transactions.
In other sector movers, financials were broadly lower: Barclays, BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank and Societe Generale declined between 1.9% and 3.3%.