The Paris stock market lost over three percent in mid-morning trade Tuesday, as risk-averse investors pulled back on concerns China's slowing economy may be bringing global growth to a halt.

Paris' CAC 40 index of leading stocks briefly slipped below the three-percent bar before scaling losses back to 2.94 percent at 4,516.32 points at 0850 GMT. Paris ended Monday 0.47 percent lower after last week's bruising activity generated by worries about China's economy.