* FTSEurofirst 300 down 0.8 pct, ends 4 weeks of gains
* U.S. consumers' mood darkens in August - survey
* Volkswagen leads automakers lower
* For up-to-the-minute market news, click on []
By Dominic Lau
LONDON, Aug 14 (Reuters) - European shares fell on Friday,
ending four weeks of gains, pressured by weak U.S. consumer
confidence data, which raised questions about the pace of
recovery in the world's largest economy.
Financials were among the top losers on the pan-European
FTSEurofirst 300 <> index, which closed 0.8 percent lower
at 940.94 points after trading as high as 954.60 earlier in the
day. It lost 1 percent during the week.
Among financials, HSBC <HSBA.L>, Credit Suisse <CSGN.VX>,
Standard Chartered <STAN.L>, ING <ING.AS>, Credit Agricole
<CAGR.PA> and Deutsche Bank <DBKGn.DE> lost 0.9-4 percent.
"This is becoming more of the view that this rally is
looking to run out of steam anytime soon and no one wants to be
exposed on the upside," said Manoj Ladwa, senior trader at ETX
Capital in London.
U.S. consumer confidence fell in early August as a growing
number of Americans fretted about their finances even though
they expected the broader economy to improve, the
Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers said.
[]
Stronger second-quarter corporate earnings, partly aided by
lower market expectations, have helped the FTSEurofirst 300 to
maintain its rally since hitting a lifetime low in March. The
index has gained 46 percent since March, and is up 13 percent
for the year.
"To get further upside, companies need to deliver on the
earnings. They have to start seeing positive earnings growth
coming in, rather than less (earnings) downgrades," said Nick
Nelson, UBS's equity strategist. "You also need to see positive
GDP growth in the third quarter as well."
Auto makers were another heavy loser on the pan-European
index, after Volkswagen <VOWG.DE> plunged 15.6 percent on fears
it was overpaying for a stake in the sports car unit of Porsche
<PSHG_p.DE>, and on its plan for an issue of preference stock.
[]
Porsche shares, however, jumped 8.7 percent.
Within the sector, Renault <RENA.PA>, Peugeot <PEUP.PA>, BMW
<BMWG.DE> and Daimler <DAIGn.DE> shed 1.2-5.2 percent.
Volumes on the FTSEurofirst 300 were about 77 percent of its
90-day daily average volume.
Across Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 <>, Germany's DAX
<> and France's CAC 40 <> were down 0.8-1.7 percent.
U.S. stocks <> <.SPX> <> were also down sharply.
LUXURY LINING, HOT PROPERTIES
Swatch Group <UHR.VX>, the world's largest watchmaker,
surged nearly 13 percent after saying it expected demand to pick
up in the second half, while reporting first-half net profit
that beat forecasts. []
The results boosted the luxury goods sector, with Richemont
<CFR.VX> and LVMH <LVMH.PA> up 3.3 and 5.5 percent,
respectively.
Real estate shares were also in demand after a 3.9-percent
gain in British Land <BLND.L> on a report that a group of Indian
and Gulf investors is mulling a 10-billion-pound-plus ($16.6
billion) takeover of the property firm.
The news lifted the property sector, with Hammerson
<HMSO.L>, Liberty International <LII.L> and Land Securities
<LAND.L> rising 0.7-1.7 percent.
Hedge fund manager Crispin Odey said equity markets were
likely to fall after their sharp rally so far this year.
"Markets are now a little overbought and will probably have
a pullback," said Odey, founding partner at Odey Asset
Management, in a note to clients. []
(Editing by Simon Jessop)
