Europe shares turn negative, miners run out of puff

LONDON, May 21 (Reuters) - European shares surrendered their early gains on Wednesday morning to turn negative as a recovery in mining shares appeared to fizzle.

By 0723 GMT the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was down 0.1 percent at 1,349.46 points.

Shares in Rio Tinto (RIO.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) were up just 0.3 percent, compared with a gain of about 1.5 percent in the opening moments of trade, while Anglo American was up 0.5 percent and Antofagasta (ANTO.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) shed 0.5 percent.

Oil and gas stocks were still the top positive weights on the broader market, with BP (BP.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), BG Group (BG.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and Total (TOTF.PA: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) up between 1 and 2.6 percent. (Reporting by Amanda Cooper)