European stocks end at 5-1/2 year closing low

* FTSEurofirst 300 ends 2.6 pct lower, down 12 pct on week

* Pharma, utilities, telecoms take a beating

* Banks hit on rising fears over future of Citigroup

By Blaise Robinson

PARIS, Nov 21 (Reuters) - European stocks slipped in a broad selloff on Friday, dropping for the seventh time in nine sessions, with fresh fears over the financial sector knocking down banking shares such as Societe Generale (SOGN.PA).

Pharmaceutical stocks, which had been resilient over the past few weeks, took a beating, with Novartis (NOVN.VX) down 6.4 percent and Sanofi-Aventis (SASY.PA) falling 10 percent.

Other sectors seen as defensive also got hit, with telecoms operator Vodafone (VOD.L) losing 7.7 percent, and utilities group EDF (EDF.PA) falling 6 percent.

The FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3 index of top European shares closed 2.6 percent lower at 760.97 points, its lowest closing level in 5-1/2 years.

The index, which is down nearly 50 percent in 2008, lost 12 percent on the week --its third consecutive week of losses-- amid rising concerns over the prospect of a deep global downturn.

"We're seeing fairly violent sector rotations, with the pharma sector under pressure today, while a number of banking shares were also hit by ongoing fears over the sector. Markets are really erratic, with a clear downtrend," said Benoit De Broissia, analyst at KBL Richelieu, in Paris.

"Beyond worrying about recession and corporate results, people have now started to worry about balance sheets, and not just banks' balance sheets," he said.

Renewed fears over the future of Citigroup (C.N) knocked European financial shares lower, with SocGen plummeting 13.4 percent, ING Groep (ING.AS) down 6.8 percent and Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE) down 2.9 percent.

Citigroup shares tumbled for a fifth straight day on Wall Street, as Chief Executive Vikram Pandit tried to downplay speculation the banking giant might sell major businesses to restore its health and investor confidence.

Bucking the trend, Bank of Ireland (BKIR.I) jumped 24 percent after saying it had received unsolicited bid approaches from unnamed groups, fuelling speculation over government plans for consolidation in the sector.

Mining shares also rallied, reversing some of the recent sharp losses sparked by fears that a global slowdown would dent the world's appetite for commodities.  Continued...