European shares hit a three-week low on Wednesday as investors digested a slew of earnings news, including results from BG Group and Banco Santander, with energy and banking stocks the biggest fallers. The key benchmark indices in France, Germany and UK were down by between 0.61% to 0.76%. Asian share markets were lower Wednesday as shipping stocks and shipbuilders fell on worries about the strength of the global economic recovery, though Honda was buoyant in Tokyo after lifting its earnings forecast. The key benchmark indices in Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Singapore and Taiwan fell by between 1.39% to 2.41%. But, China's Shanghai Composite rose 0.33%, erasing earlier losses, as airlines, brokerages and coal producers advanced on higher profits.