Major European shares continue to slip on Tuesday, with London's leading shares closing lower with a 2.7 percent fall by mobile phone heavyweight Vodafone, and Frankfurt's DAX index ending down 14.42 or 0.27 percent, Paris CAC- 40 down 3.67 or 0.08 percent.

In London, the FTSE 100 index of leading shares fell for the third day in a row, led by disappointing news from telecoms giant and market stalwart Vodafone, with the FTSE 100 closing down 27 points or 0.5 percent at 5,634, and has now lost nearly two percent of its value in just over a week.

Vodafone shares dominated trading and fell nearly three percent to 117.75 pence.

Investors were worried that the firm's individual subscribers were not spending enough.

Gases firm BOC surged 21 percent after it rejected a takeover approach.

The offer from German rival Linde is said to have failed to " fully value the growth prospects of BOC".

Shares in Yell Group fell 3.7 percent after the Competition Commission said it had not yet decided whether to intervene in the UK classified directories market.

In Paris, French share prices remained static after Tuesday trading, with the benchmark CAC 40 index in Paris was quoted four points, or 0.1 percent lower at 4,748 at the end of the day.

Steelmaker Arcelor jumped by 3.4 percent to 21.61 euros after reaching an agreement to buy Canadian steel firm Dofasco when rival Thyssen Krupp pulled out.

Industrial gasses group Air Liquide's shares also rose, by 3.7 percent to 167.40 euros, after it received an upgrade from investment bank JP Morgan.

In Frankfurt, German shares fell back in late trading, losing the gains seen earlier in the day.

Frankfurt's DAX index of shares finished the day down 0.3 percent, or 14 points, at 5,334.

The main loser was industrial group Linde, whose shares fell three percent after its takeover approach for UK gasses firm BOC was rebuffed.

Carmaker DaimlerChrysler's stock rose 3.8 percent as investors digested the news it would cut 6,000 management jobs.

In the currency market, the US dollar remained almost unchanged against the euro, ending at 1.2294 dollars to a euro from 1.2293, and the dollar went lower against the Japanese yen, closing at one dollar to 114.58 yen from 114.69.

The greenback went lower against the British sterling, closing at 1.7886 dollars to a pound from 1.7862.

Source: Xinhua