* FTSEurofirst 300 index up 0.2 pct
* Miners reverse earlier losses as metals rise
* Banks fall; Societe Generale warns on profit
By Joanne Frearson
LONDON, Jan 13 (Reuters) - European shares rose in morning
trade on Wednesday after firmer metal prices lent support to
mining stocks and defensives gained.
By 0937 GMT, the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 <>
index was up 0.2 percent at 1,056.38 points. The index rose 26
percent in 2009 and has gained 63 percent since reaching a
lifetime low in March 2009.
"Despite this, there is some concern over the speed and the
strength of the economic recovery. Investors must remember the
stock market is a barometer of corporate expectations rather
than performance of the macro picture," said Henk Potts, equity
strategist at Barclays Wealth.
"While we can be concerned about the fact we will not see a
V shape recovery in terms of economic growth, we are certainly
seeing a V shape recovery in terms of corporate profitability
and that continues to be a big driver of equity markets."
Although Alcoa <AA.N> and Chevron <CVX.N> kicked off the
fourth-quarter United States earning season with disappointing
results, analysts were expecting earnings to improve.
U.S. chipmaker Intel <INTC.O> which reports on Thursday is
seen surpassing Wall Street forecasts.
Mining stocks reversed earlier losses and added the most
points to the index as gold <XAU=> inched higher after the
dollar steadied against the euro.
Anglo American <AAL.L>, Antofagasta <ANTO.L>, BHP Billiton
<BLT.L>, Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation <ENRC.L>, Rio
Tinto <RIO.L> and Xstrata <XTA.L> were up 0.4 to 1.7 percent.
Across Europe, the FTSE 100 <> index was up 0.03
percent, Germany's DAX <> was 0.3 percent higher and
France's CAC 40 <> was up 0.1 percent.
DEFENSIVES SHINE
Defensive stocks were in demand. Brewer Anheuser-Busch InBev
<ABI.BR>, telecom Telefonica <TEF.MC> and food group Unilever
<UNc.AS> were up 1.1 to 1.3 percent.
On the downside, banks featured among the worst performers.
Societe Generale <SOGN.PA> fell 3.9 percent after the French
bank, which suffered record trading losses in 2008, took a new
hit of 1.4 billion euros ($2.03 billion) from risky assets.
[]
HSBC <HSBA.L>, BNP Paribas <BNPP.PA>, Deutsche Bank
<DBKGn.DE> and Barclays <BARC.L> were down 0.9 to 1.9 percent.
Energy stocks were under pressure as crude <CLc1> slipped
0.7 percent after an industry group reported an unexpected
increase in U.S. distillate inventories.
BP <BP.L>, Royal Dutch Shell <RDSa.L> and Cairn Energy
<CNE.L> were down 0.9 to 1.6 percent.
However, some analysts were not convinced that there would
be a V shaped market recovery.
"Confidence is dissipating quickly. There is a concern that
with such a low level of volume we are setting ourselves up for
a correction," said Justin Urquhart Stewart, director at Seven
Investment Management.
Looking at economic news, the German economy contracted by a
record five percent last year due to a slump in its key export
sector, official data showed, but the government is poised to
raise its 2010 forecast. []
(Reporting by Joanne Frearson; Editing by Sharon Lindores)
