World stocks down as investors fret over valuation

World markets were mostly down Wednesday amid worries that the current pace of economic recovery, particularly in the U.S., does not justify the rally seen in stocks since March.

In Europe, the FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was down 35 points, or 0.8 percent, at 4,296.50 while Germany's DAX fell 59 points, or 0.8 percent, to 4,296.50. The CAC-40 in France was 29 points, or 0.9 percent, lower at 3,186.50.

Earlier in Asia, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index dropped 80.90 points, or 0.5 percent, to 18,084.60, though Japan's Nikkei bucked the downward trend, gaining 87.97 points, or 0.9 percent, to 9,840.85.

With some indexes up more than 50 …