French shares drop 0.07 pct

PARIS, March 21 (Xinhua) -- French shares lost on Thursday, with the benchmark Paris CAC 40 down 0.07 percent, or 3.81 points, to close at 5,378.85 points.

Of the 40 selected large companies, 16 lost in the day.

French international financial group BNP Paribas lost 2.60 percent. French food services and facilities management company Sodexo dropped 2.61 percent and French-based international ophthalmic optics company EssilorLuxottica went down by 6.55 percent.

STMicroelectronics, a French-Italian multinational electronics and semiconductor manufacturer advanced 4.39 percent. French industrial group Bouygues rose 1.50 percent. Pernod-Ricard, a French company that produces alcoholic beverages, added 1.39 percent. Enditem