The CAC 40 index edged up 0.13 per cent to 6,233.79 points in Paris. But in Frankfurt, the DAX index fell back 0.8 per cent to 6,911.80 points as profit taking followed the gains of the previous session. The euro was quoted at 0.86 dollars. Investors were digesting another batch of corporate results and weeding out stocks to sell off at a profit after Tuesday's gains. The Asian markets set the tone, falling back towards the closing bell on profit taking. The Hang Seng index closed down 0.3 per cent in Hong Kong Wednesday, while the Nikkei-225 index fell back 0.9 per cent in Tokyo.

European technology issues staged an early rally in London on the back of a jump of almost six percent on the tech-heavy Nasaq index overnight, but the rally was running out of steam by midmorning, dealers said. Internet stocks were among the gainers after slumping in recent weeks. Lastminute.com jumped 6.9 per cent to 77.5 pence, while Scoot.com added 4.2 per cent to 85.25 pence. Among reporting companies, Cable and Wireless climbed 4.4 per cent to 888 pence after reporting flat pre-tax profits but revealing a sharp increase in its cash holdings.

In Frankfurt, investors weeded out technology shares to sell on at a profit after gains the previous session. Chip maker Infineon slipped two percent to 46.54 euros, while software giant SAP shed 2.6 per cent to 209 euros.