European shares edge higher, led by miners

                                
 * FTSEurofirst 300 rises 0.3 pct
                                
 * Miners up as metals prices rise
                                
 * Portugal set to vote on austerity measures
                                
 * Sainsbury falls as sales miss forecasts
                                
 * For up-to-the-minute market news, click on [STXNEWS/EU]
                                
 
                                
 By Brian Gorman
                                
 LONDON, March 23 (Reuters) - European shares edged higher on
Wednesday, led by miners as the price of copper and other metals
rose on upbeat comments on the demand outlook from senior
executives in the industry. 
                                
 But some investors remained cautious ahead of a key
parliamentary vote on austerity measures in Portugal that could
see the country's government brought down, and others were
focused on the continued political uncertainties in the Middle
East and North Africa. [ID:nLDE72M00L]
                                
 At 1033 GMT the FTSEurofirst 300 <.FTEU3> index of top
European shares was up 0.3 percent at 1,110.34 points, after
falling 0.1 percent in the previous session.
                                
 Copper prices rose in London and Shanghai on Wednesday after
bullish comments from mining executives on the metal's outlook.
[ID:nL3E7EN0GI]. 
                                
 Heavyweight miners to rise included  Anglo American <AAL.L>,
BHP Billiton <BLT.L> and Rio Tinto <RIO.L>, up between 1.9 and
2.1 percent.
                                
 The euro zone's sovereign debt crisis continued to worry
some investors, although some analysts see geopolitical concerns
as the more pressing issue.
                                
 Despite Wednesday's rise the pan-European index is still
down more than 6 percent from its 29-month peak of mid-February 
                                
 "Markets can regain the highs," said Bernard McAlinden,
investment strategist at NCB Stockbrokers in Dublin.
                                
 "Oil price is the more persistent worry, with tensions in
North Africa," he said.
                                
 "The only thing big enough to be disruptive is the Spanish
(sovereign debt) situation and you're not getting any worse news
coming out of Spain."
                                
  The Brent crude oil price <LCOc1> was steady near $116 a
barrel, less than $4 off a 2-1/2 year high, after rising as much
as 0.6 percent as intensifying unrest in Yemen highlighted the
security risks facing oil output from the region. 
                                
 Among individual companies, J Sainsbury <SBRY.L>, Britain's
third-biggest supermarket group, fell 5.3 percent after missing
fourth-quarter sales forecasts, adding to signs of a slowdown in
consumer spending as inflation climbs and the UK government's
spending cuts bite. [ID:nLDE72L13I]
                                
 Bigger British rival Tesco <TSCO.L> fell 1.9 percent.
                                
 Across Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 <.FTSE> and France's CAC40
<.FCHI> rose  0.5 and 0.6 percent respectively; Germany's DAX
<.GDAXI> rose 0.3 percent. Portugal's benchmark <.PSI20> fell
1.3 percent. 
                                
 Some commentators say the DAX will soon outperform, helped
by the strong German economy.
                                
 "In the light of the catastrophe in Japan the DAX has
underperformed other European countries due to utilities with a
high exposure to nuclear power and globally connected production
companies," said Deutsche Bank in a note.
                                
 "Assuming that the nuclear crisis remains contained, the
recovery of the Dax could continue.
                                
 
                                
 INDITEX RISES
                                
 Clothing retailers did better than food outlets. Shares in
Zara owner Inditex <ITX.MC> rose 5.7 percent after the world's
biggest clothing retailer posted a 32 percent jump in net
profit, meeting expectations and driven by an aggressive
expansion into developing markets including China and India.
[ID:nLDE72L1CR]. 
                                
 H&M (HMb.ST> rose 3.2 percent.
 UniCredit <CRDI.MI>, Italy's biggest bank, rose 2.1 percent
after it reported lower costs and better underlying results,
despite a bigger than expected 22 percent fall in the headline
profit after it took a hit on its Kazakh business.
[ID:nLDE72M04U]
                                
 The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee maintained
its 6-3 split in favour of keeping rates on hold this month,
seeing no major change in the medium-term outlook, minutes to
its March 9-10 meeting showed on Wednesday.
                                
 Data on Tuesday showed that British inflation surged to a
28-month high of 4.4 percent last month, reviving speculation
that the Bank of England may soon raise interest rates.
                                
 But British finance minister George Osborne is expected to
show the government's ambitious deficit-busting goals are still
within reach when he unveils his annual budget later on
Wednesday. [ID:nLDE72L2H6]
                                
 The European Central Bank is set to increase rates next
month. "Hikes in rates reflect assurance of ongoing growth,"
McAlinden said.
 (Editing by Greg Mahlich)