Apple shocks, euro falls on world markets overnight

In Europe, equities and the euro declined on renewed concerns about the sovereign debt crisis as European Union policy makers met in Brussels to discuss improved strategies to solve it.

Europe's benchmark Stoxx 600 index ended the day 0.1 per cent higher at 284.06. Three stocks declined for each two that gained.

The euro weakened as investors wondered whether Germany would support an increase in the effective lending capacity of the safety fund, known as the European Financial Stability Facility which hurt the euro before the meeting of euro zone finance ministers.

The subject is expected to dominate the talks.

The euro traded at US$1.3290, 0.65 per cent weaker on the day.

"It's becoming increasingly apparent that Germany doesn't want an increase in the rescue fund," Manuel Oliveri, currency strategist at UBS in Zurich, told Reuters.

"We believe the euro is a sell on rallies because investors are not minded to buy euro-denominated assets while structural problems in the euro zone persist," he said.

Jim Reid, a global strategist at Deutsche Bank AG in London, wrote in a note, "The lack of an imminent silver bullet when the euro group finance ministers meet today may disappoint a market that has had its expectations raised over the last few days."

"A risk is that the strong rally may be seen by the authorities as evidence that current measures are sufficient. We think they would be mistaken to believe this," according to Reid.

Canada's benchmark stock index rose 0.5 per cent in early afternoon trading. bolstered by advances in banks and technology companies amid better-than-forecast earnings at JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Intel.

Apple shares tumbled in Frankfurt on the unexpected news that CEO Steve Jobs was taking medical leave for the second time in as many years, which revived concerns over the long-term future of the maker of the iPhone and iPad.

Futures on the Nasdaq-100 Index, of which Apple makes up a fifth, sank 1.3 per cent. US markets were closed for the Martin Luther King holiday.

ARM Holdings, which designs chips for Apple Inc.'s iPhone, dropped 3 per cent.

Jobs first took a six-month break to undergo a liver transplant nearly two years ago.

Unlike previously, Apple did not specify any timeline for Jobs to resume his duties. An Apple spokesman declined to comment beyond a news release, according to Reuters.

Analysts said investors would likely fear the worst about Jobs' health.

"This time around you have to question his ability to bounce back," Hudson Square Research analyst Daniel Ernst told Reuters.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc today said it would only offer shares of Facebook Inc to investors outside the US because completing the private securities offering amid "intense media attention" might violate market regulations.

"Goldman Sachs concluded that the level of media attention might not be consistent with the proper completion of a U.S.

private placement under US law," the New York-based firm said in an emailed statement today.

Oil fell, with US crude for February declining 36 cents to US$91.18 by 1450 GMT, while ICE Brent for March lost 50 cents to US$97.88.