European shares edged lower on Thursday adding to the previous six sessions' losses, led by weakness in banks on concerns of more possible write-offs if Greece has to restructure its debt, according to Reuters. By 0921 GMT, the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares was down 0.2 percent at 1,092.08 points. The STOXX Europe 600 Banks index was down 0.9 percent, with Commerzbank, which has high exposure to Greek debt, down 2.6 percent. The European Central Bank is expected to indicate a July interest rate rise at its news conference, but little is seen in detail of a new bailout package for Greece, and European officials have said more steps are needed to meet deficit cutting targets. "If they do not signal an interest rate rise, the markets will think why they have decided to keep the flow of easy money going," said Andy Lynch, who managers 2.5 billion euros ($3.55 billion) for Schroders. "I think that will take the market lower towards the end of the day as people start worrying about fundamental weakness across the euro zone." TECHNICALS Chartists said the Euro STOXX 50, the euro zone's blue-chip index, was approaching "oversold territory", with the Relative Strength Index at 35.6. A level of 30 or below is considered oversold. The index was down 0.02 percent at 2,751.60, and chartists said that 2,717 would provide support for the index, while resistance would be at the 12-month positive trend line at 2,790.
