European stocks lag Asia and US gains

European stock markets are subdued in early trading and have been unable to mirror the overnight gains made in Asia and the US.

The increasing intervention by Western forces in Libya and Japan's nuclear crisis continues to unsettle European investors.

In London, the FTSE is marginally up 0.05% to 5,789 while the French Cac has risen 0.11% to 3,909 and the German Dax has slipped 0.07% to 6816.05 at 8.30am.

Concerns over Japanese growth and high oil prices have also played their part in stalling European shares.

However, in Asia the Nikkei posted its biggest two day advance since April 2009 as the country made progress in cooling reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.

It jumped 4.4% to 9,608 with the index also buoyed by news Japanese carmakers may restart production this week.

Meanwhile, in the US the Dow Jones surged 178.01 points, or 1.5%, to close at 12,036.

On the commodities front, oil eased back to fall 14 cents at $114.82 a barrel but is still trading near recent highs as airstrikes in Libya rekindles supply worries.