European shares finished lower on Monday, despite surging drugmaker shares, led by a slide in Gaz de France stock after the French government prevented the utility from raising tariffs, triggering broker downgrades, Reuters reported. Pharmaceutical shares such as AstraZeneca rose after a federal judge upheld the validity of two key U.S. patents on Pfizer's Lipitor cholesterol drug, limiting losses on European markets and boosting the Swiss bourse. Basic resources shares also firmed as gold rebounded after last week tumbling from near-25-year highs, with Rio Tinto gaining 1.5 percent, while a weaker oil price softened producers' shares, with Total down 0.7 percent. The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index closed down 0.12 percent at 1,266.93 points, after ending at a 44-month high on Friday. Among the top gainers were Italian banking stocks such as Banca Popolare di Milano, Banca Intesa and Banca Popolare Italiana, all up between 2.8 percent and 5.6 percent after Bank of Italy Governor Antonio Fazio resigned following intense pressure over his handling of banking takeovers this year. "The market is betting that now, without Fazio, there could be more room for mergers and stake-building," said Manlio Bonafede, fund manager at Banca Leonardo SGR in Milan.
