* FTSEurofirst 300 index rises 0.2 percent
* Financials gain ahead of Citigroup results
* Philips slips after cautious outlook By Joanne Frearson
LONDON, Oct 18 (Reuters) - European shares rose on Monday, with financials among the top performers, as investors awaited results from U.S. banking giant Citigroup to give some clues on the health of the sector. Gains were limited, however, as investors sold mining stocks following recent gains. BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto shed 1.1 percent and 1.6 percent respectively after the companies ditched plans to form the world's biggest iron-ore joint venture.
By 1115 GMT, the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares was up 0.2 percent at 1,087.21 points, having dropped as low as 1,080.08. But analysts said the index was facing some resistance at 1,087 -- last month's peak.
"Investors are positioning for good news. We have a whole bunch of bank results over the course of this week, with Citigroup out today," Peter Dixon, economist at Commerzbank said.
"This is an environment where we want to see how banks are doing, investors are looking for guidance about the future banks earnings. But, I think it is a bit of a risk to position yourself for good news."
Financials companies featured among the top performers ahead of Citigroup. In the banking sector, Lloyds Banking Group, Credit Suisse and Credit Agricole rose 1.4 to 2.3 percent.
The STOXX Europe 600 Financial Services gained 1.1 percent, with sentiment also boosted by merger and acquisition news.
BlueBay jumped 30 percent after the specialist credit asset manager agreed to a 963 million pound takeover by Royal Bank of Canada.
PHILIPS SLIPS
On the downside, Philips Electronics fell 4.1 percent after it said it was cautious about sales growth as consumer confidence remained fragile, after third-quarter operating profit beat forecasts on cost cuts.
Actelion shares slipped 3.2 percent ahead of its quarterly results and after rising strongly in recent days on talk it could be the next takeover target in the pharmaceutical industry.
"Actelion is presenting its third-quarter figures on Thursday, so why not take some profit after the strong move just on rumours?" one Zurich-based trader said.
Luxury goods makers were weak, with LVMH, Hermes and PPR 0.9 to 2.1 percent lower.
Analysts said the sector was being pressured by a report by U.S. consultancy Bain & Co which predicted the luxury sector's growth would slow to 3-5 percent next year after a 10 percent rebound in 2010.
Valuations on the STOXX Europe 600 looked cheap. Its one-year forward price-to-earnings ratio stood at about 10.41 against a 10-year average of 13.49, Thomson Reuters Datastream showed.
Across Europe, the FTSE 100 index was 0.1 percent higher, Germany's DAX was up 0.3 percent and France's CAC 40 was 0.2 percent lower. (Editing by David Cowell)