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| - European stock markets mostly fell Wednesday following losses across much of Asia on profit-taking after a strong global rally, with investors worried valuations may have gone too high. It comes after Wall Street's Dow notched up another record peak overnight, while the dollar rose Wednesday against major rivals. Oil prices meanwhile saw further strong gains, having risen more than 20 percent so far this year to sit at around 13-month highs. Lifted in recent months by OPEC production cuts, there was added support Wednesday from a big freeze in Texas that has hammered output in the key US production state. Bitcoin hit another record, at $51,719.10, having broken $50,000 for the first time on Tuesday. Regarding equities, while analysts said there was room for a drop, the general view is that they will resume their strong upward march as Covid vaccine rollouts, slowing infection rates and the easing of lockdowns allow economies to return to normal. The focus was firmly on Washington, where US lawmakers ponder the next move on President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion stimulus package, the prospect of which has been a key driver of a months-long surge in global equities. Bets that the vast spending splurge will hand an extra boost to the world's top economy -- and the prospect of business reopenings -- have also fired inflation expectations, sending US Treasury yields close to one-year highs this week. That has led to concerns about rising borrowing costs, which market-watchers fear could undercut the recovery and hit consumer spending. "The move up in yields has been driven by increasing inflationary concerns amid a rise in energy prices along with the prospect of a big US fiscal stimulus and the global recovery entering a more solid stage," said National Australia Bank's Rodrigo Catril. British inflation meanwhile climbed to 0.7 percent last month from 0.6 percent in December on higher food prices, the Office for National Statistics said Wednesday. Analysts expect British inflation to rise strongly in the coming months with the UK economy tipped to emerge from its latest coronavirus lockdown. London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.2 percent at 6,735.01 points Frankfurt - DAX 30: DOWN 0.6 percent at 13,986.69 Paris - CAC 40: FLAT at 5,788.23 EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 0.2 percent at 3,718.84 Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.6 percent at 30,292.19 (close) Hong Kong - Hang Seng: UP 1.1 percent at 31,084.94 (close) Shanghai - Composite: Closed for a holiday New York - Dow: UP 0.2 percent at 31,522.75 (close Tuesday) Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.2066 from $1.2105 at 2150 GMT Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3863 from $1.3902 Euro/pound: DOWN at 87.02 pence from 87.07 pence Dollar/yen: UP at 106.02 yen from 105.99 yen Brent North Sea crude: UP 1.5 percent at $64.31 per barrel West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.2 percent at $60.75 per barrel dan-bcp/rfj/bmm
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