German shares fell in early trading on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange on Wednesday in markets reacting to the downturn on Wall Street the day before. As the new session got started, the 30-share DAX fell 0.94 per cent to 4173 points. The MDAX 70-shares mid-cap list eased by 0.23 per cent to 5345 points, while the technology stocks' TecDAX dropped 0.67 per cent to 513 points. The early trading losses followed on the showing on Wall Street on Tuesday, when the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 106.48 points, or 1.01 per cent, to 10,440.58 points. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 Index declined 13.18 points, or 1.11 per cent, to 1,177.07. The technology- heavy Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 36.60 points, or 1.70 per cent, to 2,114.65. Meanwhile the euro continued its retreat from record- high levels with European markets quoting 1.3360 dollars in apparent profit-taking in early trading Wednesday. The rate was well below the record-high quotation of 1.3469 dollars or 74.81 euro-cents per dollar, seen in trading on Tuesday, as well as substantially below the 1.3456 dollars reference pegging set by the European Central Bank on Tuesday. Traders said there was profit-taking as investors cashed in on the euro's recent strong gains and as markets were kept guessing about whether central banks might intervene to slow the euro down and help out the dollar.
