LONDON: A selloff in technology stocks weighed on European shares on Thursday after disappointing numbers from Nokia, leaving a top pan-European equity index set for its first monthly fall this year.
However, most national euro zone indexes were in positive territory after data showed deflation had ended, persuading investors that easing by the European Central Bank was having an effect.
Shares in Finnish firm Nokia fell 8.5 percent after it posted quarterly profits well below forecast at its main telecom network equipment business, citing lower software sales, higher costs and challenging conditions in Europe and Latin America.
"It came as a surprise to many because Nokia's business mix was supposed to be a bit better than this," Evli Bank analyst Mikko Ervasti said.
Sector peer Alcatel Lucent, the target of a planned takeover by Nokia, dropped 6.5 percent while Ericsson was down 2.9 percent. The broader STOXX Europe 600 tech index fell 1.3 percent.
The FTSEurofirst 300 index of European shares traded 0.1 percent lower at 1,580.70 points by 1358 GMT.
This left it down 0.3 percent for April, heading for its first monthly fall of 2015.
Milan-listed shares in Fiat Chrysler Automobiles extended losses from the previous session, down 2.7 percent, after Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne made another call for largescale consolidation in the car industry.
Franco-Italian semiconductor maker STMicroelectronics
dropped over 11 percent after posting slightly weaker-than-expected first-quarter results on Thursday and warning it anticipated little pickup in the current quarter.
With just over a third of European earnings releases out by Wednesday, 61 percent of companies had met or beaten expectations, StarMine data showed.
Germany's DAX outperformed rivals to trade up 0.7 percent, with the Spanish IBEX up 0.6 percent and Italy's FTSE MIB up 0.5 percent
Banco Popular rose 6.7 percent. Although Spain's sixth-biggest bank by market value posted a net interest income below forecast, it reaffirmed its objectives to hit a 2.3 billion-2.4 billion euros net interest income target in 2015.
Many analysts are betting on a euro zone economic recovery to support earnings this year and Spain's economy expanded in the first quarter at its fastest pace in over seven years.
The euro zone ended four months of deflation in April, although prices were only flat from a year earlier.
"Earnings are in line to have another quarter of growth, particularly in sales, and that highlights that the economic recovery in Europe is on track," said James Butterfill, global equity strategist at Coutts.
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