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London's benchmark FTSE 100 index dropped 0.8 percent to 7,219.19 points, with investors eyeing the Bank of England, which is Thursday set to keep its main interest rate at 0.5 percent and also publish its latest UK growth and inflation forecasts.
Frankfurt's DAX 30 shed 0.7 percent to 12,506.18 points and the Paris CAC 40 lost 0.5 percent to 5,229.78 compared with the closing levels on Wednesday.
After slumping in the region of 2.5 percent on Tuesday, Europe's leading stock markets ended Wednesday's sessions with gains of between around 1.5 and 2.0 percent.