Europe stocks slip after Fed's cautious comments

* FTSEurofirst 300 down 0.7 pct, trims Wed's 2.4 pct rise

* Credit Agricole sinks on worries about results

* Porsche up on speculation over deal with Qatar

* For up-to-the-minute market news, click on [STXNEWS/EU]

By Blaise Robinson

PARIS, June 25 (Reuters) - European stocks slipped in early trade on Thursday, trimming the previous session's 2.4 percent rise, as investors turned cautious after the U.S. Federal Reserve reiterated concerns over the economic outlook.

At 0900 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 <.FTEU3> index of top European shares was down 0.7 percent at 847.92 points, led lower by pharma, chemical and energy stocks.

Novartis dropped 1.4 percent, Bayer lost 1.6 percent and Total fell 1.3 percent.

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday held interest rates near zero and sounded a cautious note on the economy, despite some hopes that the worst of the global economic downturn may soon be over.

The U.S. central bank, concluding a two-day meeting, said it would hold overnight rates in a range between zero to 0.25 percent and gave no hint of an imminent exit from its easy monetary policy. [ID:nN24163547]

"The Fed was cautious, but it's a good thing as it doesn't fuel inflation expectations," said David Thebault, head of quantitative sales trading, at Global Equities, in Paris.

"The weakness we've seen recently on the market has been profit taking. We might move sideways during the summer, but appetite for equities from institutional investors is definitely rising and they could seriously start buying in the fall," he said.

French bank Credit Agricole dropped 4.9 percent on market talk that the lender's results could come in lower than analysts' consensus, traders said. A Credit Agricole spokesman declined to comment.

"Word is that the consensus is being readjusted to the downside," a Paris-based trader said.

Sanofi-Aventis shed 3.5 percent, as dealers and analysts cited concerns raised by some scientists that the company's key blockbuster diabetes treatment Lantus might be linked to cancer risk.

There was also vague talk of a possible bid for AstraZeneca , which was up 1.6 percent, although analysts were sceptical. Officials at Sanofi declined immediate comment.

On the upside, France's Bouygues rose 4 percent after Goldman Sachs upgraded its rating on the stock to "buy" from "neutral".

Swedish clothing retailer Hennes & Mauritz gained 1.1 percent after posting second-quarter profits above market expectations.

DSG International Plc rose 1.1 percent after Europe's second-largest electricals retailer posted a slightly better-than-feared 78 percent slump in full-year profit.

Porsche surged 5 percent, propelled by renewed speculation that the car maker was close to a deal with Qatar to give the Gulf state a shareholding in Volkswagen, a move that would clear the way for the two German car makers to merge.

Around Europe, UK's FTSE 100 index <.FTSE> was down 0.1 percent, Germany's DAX index <.GDAXI> down 0.7 percent, and France's CAC 40 <.FCHI> down 0.5 percent.

Since reaching a record low in early March, the FTSEurofirst 300 has risen 32 percent, and is on track to record its best quarterly performance since late 1999.

But Europe's benchmark index is still down 48 percent from their multiyear peak reached in mid-2007. (Additional reporting by Ben Hirschler in London; Editing by Hans Peters)