By Joanne Frearson
LONDON, March 2 (Reuters) - European shares were flat on Tuesday morning, with falls in financials and drugmakers offsetting gains in personal good makers after L'Oreal rose on Nestle stake reports.
By 0947 GMT, the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares was up 0.01 percent at 1,019.66 points after gaining 1.2 percent in the previous session. The index, which gained 26 percent in 2009, is down 2.6 percent this year.
Financials featured among the worst performers. Banking stocks Banco Santander, Credit Suisse and BNP Paribas slipped 0.6-1.3 percent.
'It had a good run yesterday, so I would be surprised if it does anything too much on the upside today,' said Bernard McAlinden, market strategist at NCB Stockbrokers in Dublin.
'The U.S. and Asian markets were good overnight. Earnings in general have been on the right side of things. But what is still going on in the background is the Greece issue.'
On Monday, the European Union urged Greece to agree additional austerity measures within days to tackle a fiscal crisis that has shaken the euro zone, and promised to help Athens overcome its debt problems.
Insurer Prudential fell 5.2 percent extending its previous session's slide after announcing a $35.5 billion deal to purschase AIG's Asian insurance unit and a $21 billion rights issue to help financial it.
ING Groep, Aviva and Zurich Financial lost 0.8-2.1 percent.
INTERCELL FALLS AFTER Q4
Drugmakers were out of favour. Austrian biotech company Intercell fell 6.2 percent after posting worst than expected fourth-quarter results.
Italian eyewear maker Luxottica dropped 4.3 percent after it reported late on Monday an 8.4 percent fall in fourth-quarter net profit on falling sales.
However, the personal goods sector featured among the best performers. L'Oreal gained 3.3 percent after the Daily Telegraph reported Swiss Food group Nestle was rumoured to be in informal talks to buy Liliane Bettencourt's 31 percent stake in the French cosmetics group. Nestle was up 0.3 percent.
BMW gained 1.9 percent after chief executive Norbert Reithofer said at the Geneva auto show it made a profit in the U.S. market in 2009.
Daimler rose 0.6 percent. The carmaker said late on Monday it planned to develop electric cars for China with battery maker BYD.
Across Europe, the FTSE 100 index was up 0.3 percent, Germany's DAX was 0.2 percent higher and France's CAC 40 was up 0.3 percent. Keywords: MARKETS EUROPE STOCKS (joanne.frearson@thomsonreuters.com; +44 207 542 2773, Reuters Messaging:joanne.frearson.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
LONDON, March 2 (Reuters) - European shares were flat on Tuesday morning, with falls in financials and drugmakers offsetting gains in personal good makers after L'Oreal rose on Nestle stake reports.
By 0947 GMT, the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares was up 0.01 percent at 1,019.66 points after gaining 1.2 percent in the previous session. The index, which gained 26 percent in 2009, is down 2.6 percent this year.
Financials featured among the worst performers. Banking stocks Banco Santander, Credit Suisse and BNP Paribas slipped 0.6-1.3 percent.
'It had a good run yesterday, so I would be surprised if it does anything too much on the upside today,' said Bernard McAlinden, market strategist at NCB Stockbrokers in Dublin.
'The U.S. and Asian markets were good overnight. Earnings in general have been on the right side of things. But what is still going on in the background is the Greece issue.'
On Monday, the European Union urged Greece to agree additional austerity measures within days to tackle a fiscal crisis that has shaken the euro zone, and promised to help Athens overcome its debt problems.
Insurer Prudential fell 5.2 percent extending its previous session's slide after announcing a $35.5 billion deal to purschase AIG's Asian insurance unit and a $21 billion rights issue to help financial it.
ING Groep, Aviva and Zurich Financial lost 0.8-2.1 percent.
INTERCELL FALLS AFTER Q4
Drugmakers were out of favour. Austrian biotech company Intercell fell 6.2 percent after posting worst than expected fourth-quarter results.
Italian eyewear maker Luxottica dropped 4.3 percent after it reported late on Monday an 8.4 percent fall in fourth-quarter net profit on falling sales.
However, the personal goods sector featured among the best performers. L'Oreal gained 3.3 percent after the Daily Telegraph reported Swiss Food group Nestle was rumoured to be in informal talks to buy Liliane Bettencourt's 31 percent stake in the French cosmetics group. Nestle was up 0.3 percent.
BMW gained 1.9 percent after chief executive Norbert Reithofer said at the Geneva auto show it made a profit in the U.S. market in 2009.
Daimler rose 0.6 percent. The carmaker said late on Monday it planned to develop electric cars for China with battery maker BYD.
Across Europe, the FTSE 100 index was up 0.3 percent, Germany's DAX was 0.2 percent higher and France's CAC 40 was up 0.3 percent. Keywords: MARKETS EUROPE STOCKS (joanne.frearson@thomsonreuters.com; +44 207 542 2773, Reuters Messaging:joanne.frearson.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
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