European companies expected to report further fall in quarterly profits

LONDON (Reuters) - European companies are expected to report a 0.2% fall in profits year on year in the fourth quarter, according to I/B/E/S Refinitiv data, a smaller drop than previously expected but still on track for a year-long earnings recession.

Companies listed on the pan-European STOXX 600 index <.STOXX> had been expected last week to report a 0.6% drop, according to I/B/E/S Refinitiv. The decline would mark the fourth straight quarter of falling profits.

(Reporting by Joice Alves; Editing by Edmund Blair)