* FTSEurofirst 300 index falls 0.4 pct
* Banks reverse earlier gains; Societe Generale up
* Cobham drops on U.S. contract delays
* Fed decision due at 1815 GMT
By Joanne Frearson
LONDON, Nov 3 (Reuters) - European shares slipped on
Wednesday, after rising for four consecutive days, on investors'
concerns that the U.S. Federal Reserve might inject less fresh
stimulus into the economy than previously thought.
The banking sector which is sensitive to changes in the
economic environment reversed earlier gains, with the STOXX
Europe 600 Banks <.SX7P> down 0.2 percent.
The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 <> index of top
shares closed down 0.4 percent at 1,088.92 points. The index has
gained around 6 percent since the beginning of September on
hopes that the Fed would give the economy a substantial boost.
"There is no certainty that the Fed will do what investors
are looking for and no one is prepared to take big positions
before the decision," Jeremy Batstone-Carr, head of equities at
Charles Stanley said.
"Investors are looking for $500 billion and a lot will ride
on whether or not the Fed leaves the door open for more
quantitative easing, if they don't I think there is going to be
an aggressive sell-off."
The Fed statement is due out at 1815 GMT and analysts
predict the Fed will buy assets worth at least $500 billion in a
bid to stimulate the economy, but the scope and the pace of the
bond purchase is uncertain.
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Preview of the meeting: []
PDF on earlier reports: http://link.reuters.com/pyb23q
More stories on Fed policy: []
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However, some banks rose. French bank Societe Generale
<SOGN.PA> climbed 1.9 percent after it said it would not need a
capital increase to meet tougher industry rules and posted
forecast-beating quarterly profit. []
British bank Lloyds <LLOY.L> was 2.7 percent higher, after
it poached Antonio Horta-Osorio, head of Santander's <SAN.MC>
fast-growing British division, to be its next chief executive in
a coup that dealt a blow to its Spanish rival. []
Santander fell 3.5 percent.
COBHAM SLIPS
Cobham <COB.L> fell 9.5 percent after the aerospace
electronics group said it is unlikely to deliver earnings growth
in 2010 due to continued delays in the award of U.S. defence
contracts and a fragile commercial market. []
"There's no precise guidance but this seems like a
semi-profit warning to me," one analyst who declined to be named
said.
"Roughly two-thirds of Cobham's revenues come from the U.S.
and they expected the delays to recover in the second half but
that hasn't happened -- I can see 2010 estimates being reduced."
Norway's Statoil <STL.OL> slipped 5.4 percent after it
slashed its 2010 oil and gas production target as heavy
maintenance work in the third quarter weakened earnings and cast
doubt on its plans to boost output by up to 14 percent by 2012.
Next <NXT.L> shares dropped 2.2 percent after Britain's No.2
clothing retailer posted a slightly bigger-than-expected drop in
third-quarter underlying sales.
Luxury goods group Richemont <CFR.VX> rose 2.6 percent after
brokers Cheuvreux and Nomura published upbeat notes ahead of the
group's half-year results.
Stocks also had been initially supported by news that
Republicans, viewed as more pro-business by investors, pushed
Democrats decisively from power in the U.S. House of
Representatives and strengthened their ranks in the Senate.
[]
Across Europe, the FTSE 100 <> index was down 0.2
percent, while Germany's DAX <> and France's CAC 40
<> both slipped 0.6 percent.
(Reporting by Joanne Frearson; Editing by Erica Billingham)
