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Meyer Burger raises $228 mln via rights issue; shares drop

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FinecoBank up on brokerage upgrade

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EU inflation data expected at 0900 GMT

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STOXX 600 down 0.1%

(Updated at 0829 GMT)

By Johann M Cherian and Ozan Ergenay

April 3 (Reuters) - European shares see-sawed in a tight

range on Wednesday as investors stayed on the sidelines ahead of

a crucial inflation report that could sway expectations on the

timing of the European Central Bank's first rate cut.

The continent-wide STOXX 600 was down 0.1% by 0829

GMT. Rate-sensitive real estate stocks lost 0.9%, while

banks gained 0.6%.

Following a cooler-than-expected inflation report on Tuesday

from Germany, the region's largest economy, all eyes will be on

the Eurozone inflation March report, due at 0900 GMT.

Excluding volatile components, consumer prices are expected

to rise 3% in March, slightly easing from a 3.1% jump in the

previous month.

"There's likely to be some nervousness in Europe on the back

of (the data) that could influence the path for monetary policy

from the ECB," said Daniela Hathorn, senior market analyst at

Capital.com.

"Markets now expect the ECB to be the first out of the Fed

and Bank of England to cut interest rates because inflation has

come down significantly and growth isn't showing signs of

concern."

Earlier in the day, Austrian policymaker Robert Holzmann

said the ECB could start cutting interest rates in June as

inflation may fall quicker than expected.

Hopes of interest rates being reduced through the year and

optimism around artificial intelligence have buoyed investor

sentiment over the past two quarters, with the benchmark index

hovering near record highs.

On the day, the technology sector inched up 0.2% in

choppy trading. A powerful earthquake in Taiwan raised concerns

about possible disruptions to the vital chip-making industry,

which had spearheaded much of the global rally in the previous

quarter.

Among individual stocks, solar panel maker Meyer Burger

said it had successfully completed a capital increase

through a rights issue, bringing in gross proceeds of 206.75

million Swiss francs ($227.7 million). The stock, however, fell

28.5%.

Swiss Re dropped 1.6% to the bottom of

Switzerland's benchmark index after the reinsurance firm

said it would appoint its corporate solutions boss Andreas

Berger as its group chief executive from July, replacing

long-serving CEO Christian Mumenthaler.

FinecoBank gained 5.4% after brokerage J.P.Morgan

upgraded the Italian bank to "overweight" from "neutral", while

Infineon rose 2% after Morgan Stanley upped the

German chipmaker to "overweight" from "equal-weight".

Later in the day, investors will also parse remarks from

U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell for clues on when the

central bank will deliver its first rate cut.