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London - World stock markets diverged on Wednesday awaiting the outcome of the latest Federal Reserve policy meeting.
Asian markets took a knock, with Apple's suppliers hit by the group's first fall in iPhone sales.
In Europe, London eased as official data showed British economic growth slowing in the first quarter, while the OECD warned on the level of Britain's wealth should the country vote to leave the European Union.
Around 1000 GMT, London's benchmark FTSE 100 index was down 0.1%, while Frankfurt and Paris were both slightly higher.
The euro climbed against the dollar.
"The FTSE struggled to gain momentum following its first-quarter GDP reveal this morning, whilst the Dow Jones is set for an Apple and Fed driven session this afternoon," said Connor Campbell, analyst at Spreadex trading group.
"Coming in a tad higher than expected at 0.4 percent, compared to the 0.6% seen in the final quarter of 2015, the UK's latest GDP reading was nevertheless a disappointment, with enough evidence to suggest that the current Brexit fears are having a material effect on the country's growth."
The OECD on Wednesday became the latest international organisation to urge Britain to stay in the European Union, warning Britons would be worse off financially if they voted to leave in the June referendum.
Across the Atlantic, the US central bank wraps up its meeting later Wednesday with a statement that could shed light on the future path of American interest rates.
After the turmoil across world markets earlier this year, the Fed has lowered its forecasts for borrowing costs in 2016, saying it will closely watch overseas developments before making a move.
Sentiment was meanwhile dampened by disappointing earnings news from US tech giant Apple, dealers said.
Apple said Tuesday that waning demand for its popular iPhone handset led to the firm's first dip in revenue since 2003 and was likely to continue this year as a growth slowdown in China drags on that crucial market.
The news pummelled Apple's shares in after-hours US trading, with the firm plummeting more than eight percent.
Separately, Twitter posted Tuesday a first-quarter loss of $80m, compared with a loss of $162m a year earlier. Revenues jumped 36% to $595m, but this missed expectations.
"More disappointing results from US tech... knocked sentiment in Asia overnight and offset the positive US close and a rebound in Chinese industrial profits," noted Mike van Dulken, head of research at traders Accendo Markets.
Tokyo stocks fell as Japan's corporate earnings season got off to a shaky start, while traders awaited also a monetary policy decision from the Bank of Japan.
The BoJ's two-day meeting, which ends Thursday, is in focus with policymakers widely expected to unleash more stimulus after deadly earthquakes struck earlier this month.
