Europe shares fall in early trade, commodities lead

FRANKFURT, Nov 11 (Reuters) - European shares dropped in early trade on Tuesday, tracking losses on Wall Street and in Asia, as fear of a widespread recession eclipsed optimism over China's $600 billion stimulus package.

At 0815 GMT the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was down 1.5 percent at 908.48 points. The index rose 0.9 percent in the previous session, as news of China's stimulus plan sparked a rally in commodity-related shares.

But commodity stocks pulled back on Tuesday as fears for the global economy returned to the fore and metals and oil prices CLc1 retreated.

BG Group (BG.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), BP (BP.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), Total (TOTF.PA: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and ENI (ENI.MI: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) were down 1.9-3.9 percent.

Miners fell, with Anglo American (AAL.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), BHP Billiton (BLT.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), Rio Tinto (RIO.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and Xstrata (XTA.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) 3.9-5.9 percent lower.

Data showed on Tuesday that China's inflation fell to a 17-month low of 4 percent in October, while trade figures were expected to show slowing imports, dampening hopes that China's growth will help cushion the impact of a global downturn.

Adding to the gloom in Europe, data showed British retail sales fell for a fifth straight month in October on a like-for-like basis, and by the biggest amount in more than three years.

Banks took the most points off the index. Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) slid 5 percent, Banco Santander (SAN.MC: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) fell 4.3 percent and Credit Agricole (CAGR.PA: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) was down 2 percent. Across Europe, the FTSE 100 index was down 1.5 percent, Germany's DAX was 2.2 percent lower and France's CAC 40 was down 2 percent.

(Reporting by Sarah Marsh)