Europe Stocks Fall In Early Trade, Banks Weigh

At 0815 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was down 0.4 percent at 793.48 points.

European shares fell early on Friday, led down by banking stocks, as investors positioned themselves ahead of economic data from the United States and Europe which is expected to be bleak.

At 0815 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was down 0.4 percent at 793.48 points, after rising briefly in initial trades.

Banks took most points off the index, with Dexia falling 3.4 percent, after the company said it should book a net loss of 3 billion euros ($3.9 billion) for 2008.

"Later on ... economic data for Germany, Europe and the United States will be setting the tone to be followed by some earnings reports in the U.S.," said Heino Ruland, strategist at Ruland Research.

Eurozone unemployment data for December is due at 1000 GMT, while U.S. GDP figures for the fourth quarter, due at 1330 GMT, are expected to show a contraction of 5.4 percent in the fourth quarter.

Swiss drugmaker Roche Holding AG gained 1.4 percent after it launched a hostile bid for Genentech and cut its offer for the 44 percent of the U.S. biotechnology company it does not already own.

Across Europe, the FTSE 100 and Germany's DAX were both 0.4 percent lower and France's CAC 40 was down 0.6 percent.