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World shares were under pressure for a second day on Thursday and the dollar slipped against the yen, as uncertainty over when the US Federal Reserve might slow its stimulus programme dominated markets.
Top European stocks were rangebound after heavy falls on Wednesday, but another 5% dive in Japan's Nikkei in Asian trading left MSCI's world index at a three-week low.
"The market is being dominated by expectations of Fed tightening," said Daiwa securities economist Tobias Blattner. "German government bond... yields have gone up quite significantly and after this massive rally equities are correcting to a certain extent."
The US job market and the economy as a whole may be strong enough in a few months to allow the Fed to pare its bond buying by a small amount, dovish Fed policymaker Eric Rosengren said on Wednesday.
The uncertainty left the dollar broadly weaker and hovering near a session low of 100.555 against the yen. The euro drifted up to $1.2964 and towards a two-week high.
European Commission sentiment data is due at 0900 GMT, with investors looking for signs of a pickup following recent patchy surveys. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande also meet ahead of a June EU summit.
In the debt market, German Bund futures recovered some ground after a recent sell-off as stock market jitters bolstered demand for less risky assets. Investors were also reluctant to place big bets before a sale of 5- and 10- year bonds later in the day.
