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European shares were lower in early trade today as investors took a cautious stance ahead of US non-farm payroll figures, with commodities the biggest fallers tracking weakness in crude and metal prices.

By 0705 GMT, the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3 index of top shares fell 0.8 per cent at 858.66 points after rising 1.8 per cent in the previous session.