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European shares set for weekly loss but Syngenta soars

Reuters - UK Focus

* I[FTSEurofirst set for worst weekly loss since early Sept.

* Syngenta (LSE: 0QOP.L - news) surges on reported takeover approach

* Ferragamo drops after weak results

By Danilo Masoni

MILAN, Nov 13 (Reuters) - European shares fell on Friday, weighed down by some weak corporate earnings, although agrichemicals group Syngenta surged after a bid approach.

Syngenta rallied 7.1 percent after Bloomberg reported that China National Chemical Corp was in talks to buy the world's largest agrichemical company, although its initial offer of nearly $42 billion was rejected.

Overall, though, European stock markets were lower.

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The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index slid 0.6 percent and was set for its worst weekly fall since early September, while the euro zone's blue-chip Euro STOXX 50 index also retreated 0.4 percent.

The earnings picture in Europe remained mixed, with data from Thomson Reuters StarMine showing that half of the companies on the European STOXX 600 index have missed market expectations with their third quarter results so far.

Ferragamo fell 5.3 percent as the luxury goods maker described market expectations for its 2015 earnings as being a challenge for it to meet.

Spain's ACS (Amsterdam: SR6.AS - news) also dropped 4.5 percent after sales and core earnings at the construction and engineering company missed expectations.

Traders added that the possibility of a U.S (Other OTC: UBGXF - news) . interest rate rise in December meant investors were unwilling to buy up large positions in the market for the time being. "A cautious mood is prevailing for now," said Harry Shann at Logic Investments.

Nevertheless, Shann and others said the possibility of new monetary stimulus measures from the European Central Bank (ECB) in December would also ensure that European stocks could quickly recover from any pullback caused by a Fed rate hike.

Enrico Vaccari, fund manager at Italy's Consultinvest, added that signs of bid activity - such as the approach for Syngenta - also sent out positive signals for European equities.

"The news about Syngenta is a sign that the recovery in Europe is under way," said Vaccari.

Today's European research round-up RCH/EUROPE (Additional reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; Editing by Mark Heinrich)