European shares end 6-day rise in thin trade

                                
 * FTSEurofirst 300 breaks 6 days winning run
                                
 * Set for strongest yearly gains in a decade

                                
 By Dominic Lau
                                
 LONDON, Dec 30 (Reuters) - European shares snapped a six-day
winning run on Wednesday in thin trade, with banks and
drugmakers leading the fallers.
                                
 The FTSEurofirst 300 <.FTEU3> closed 0.4 percent lower at
1,043.24 points, pulling back from a 15-month closing high hit
on Tuesday. Volumes were about 38 percent of the index's 90-day
daily average.
                                
 Banks <.SX7P>, one of the best performers this year, were
among the top losers, with Barclays <BARC.L>, Deutsche Bank
<DBKGn.DE>, BNP Paribas <BNPP.PA>, Banco Santander <SAN.MC> and
UBS <USBN.VX> down 0.9-2.4 percent.
                                
 "For the early part of next year, we are cautiously
optimistic," said Joost van Leenders, an investment specialist
at Fortis Investments.
                                
 "The economic recovery is discounted within the markets but
further gains in corporate profit may help the markets somewhat
further higher. We would not say the market is overvalued at
this point."
                                
 After a dismal 2008, the FTSEurofirst 300 is up 25 percent
for the year, on track for its biggest yearly gains since 1999.
                                
 Data showed on Wednesday that broad euro zone money supply
posted a surprise drop in November and loans to households and
firms fell for the third month running, serving a warning to the
European Central Bank that it must tread carefully with its exit
strategy.
                                
 However, business activity in the U.S. Midwest expanded far
more than expected in December, according to the Institute for
Supply Management-Chicago business barometer.
                                
 Commodity shares also gave up recent gains. BP <BP.L>, Royal
Dutch Shell <RDSa.AS>, Total <TOTF.PA> and BG Group <BG.L> fell
0.4-1.4 percent.
                                
 Among miners, BHP Billiton <BLT.L>, Vedanta Resources
<VED.L>, Anglo American <AAL.L> and Rio Tinto <RIO.L> fell
0.4-1.4 percent.
                                
 Kazakh copper producer Kazakhmys <KAZ.L>, however, put on
0.4 percent. The miner said it has secured a loan of up to $2.7
billion from China Development Bank and Kazakh state welfare
fund Samruk-Kazyna to develop its growth projects.
                                
 Drugmakers were also weaker. GlaxoSmithKline <GSK.L>,
AstraZeneca <AZN.L> and Roche <ROG.VX> dropped 0.8-1.2 percent.
                                
 Across Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 <.FTSE> eased 0.7 percent
and France's CAC 40 <.FCHI> lost 0.6 percent. Germany's DAX
<.GDAXI> dropped 0.9 percent, but was still up 23.9 percent for
the year after losing 40 percent in 2008.
                                
 German markets will close on New Year's Eve, while those in
London and Paris will have shortened trading session. They will
resume trading on Monday, Jan. 4.
                                
 Alternative energy firms were in demand on Wednesday, with
Q-Cells <QCEG.DE> up 2.5 percent and Vestas Wind <VWS.CO> up 2.9
percent.
                                
 Among individual movers, Petrofac <PFC.L> added 1.9 percent
after the oil services firm won its first contract in
Turkmenistan.
 (Editing by Rupert Winchester)