LONDON, Aug 2 (Reuters) - Semiconductor firms' shares were a bright spot in early deals on Wednesday in a lacklustre European market, weighed down by a fall among mining stocks and banks.
The pan-European STOXX 600 .STOXX index as well euro zone bluechips fell 0.1 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE slipped 0.2 percent.
Tech stocks .SX8P were the strongest sectoral performers with Apple AAPL.O suppliers Dialog Semiconductor DLGS.DE and AMS AMS.S jumping 5.7 percent and 3.3 percent respectively after iPhone optimism lifted Apple shares to a record high overnight. rise in tech was not enough to outweigh falls among mining firms .SXPP and oil stocks .SXEP , which declined on the back of weaker metals and oil prices.
Disappointing results from Societe Generale (PA:SOGN) and Commerzbank (DE:CBKG) were a drag on euro zone banks. The sector index .SX7E fell 0.4 percent. Natixis CNAT.PA jumped around 4 percent, however, on the back of higher profits for the period.
Well-received earnings boosted shares in gambling firm William Hill WMH.L , which rocketed more than 7 percent to the top of the STOXX, while results also spurred sizeable moves in Hugo Boss BOSSn.DE and Lufthansa LHAG.DE .
Around halfway through the results season, second quarter earnings in Europe are expected to increase 13.4 percent year on year, or 11.2 percent excluding the energy sector, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.