Europe shares fall for 5th day on financials, oils

* FTSEurofirst 300 falls for 5th straight session

* Financials and auto makers lead the losers

* Drugmakers offer some support

* For up-to-the-minute market news, click on [STXNEWS/EU]

By Dominic Lau

LONDON, July 8 (Reuters) - European shares fell for the fifth straight session on Wednesday to their lowest closing level in 10 weeks, as investors faced further signs that the pace of economic recovery will not be quick.

The FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3 index of top European shares closed 1.1 percent lower at 817.12 points. The fifth consecutive drop also marked the index's longest losing streak since mid-January.

Volumes on the FTSEurofirst 300 were about 80 percent of its 90-day average daily volume.

Financials were among the standout losers, with HSBC (HSBA.L), Banco Santander (SAN.MC), UBS (UBSN.VX), BNP Paribas (BNPP.PA), Aviva (AV.L), KBC Groep (KBC.BR), Legal & General (LGEN.L) and AXA (AXAF.PA) off 1.9 percent to 8.7 percent.

Group of Eight leaders believe the world economy still faces "significant risks" and may need further help, according to summit draft documents, while the International Monetary Fund said the global economy was starting to pull out of recession but recovery would be sluggish and government policies need to remain supportive. The economies of the 16-nation euro zone, and that of the 28-nation European Union, declined at rates of 2.5 and 2.4 percent respectively in the first quarter, it was confirmed by Eurostat, the EU statistics agency. [ID:nL8729330]

"People will be very focused on economic data, the shape of the recovery. A lot of people are betting on the V-shaped type of recovery, and if that isn't validated by data, then we can expect the market to come under pressure," said Ronan Carr, European equity strategist at Morgan Stanley.

"Equally, if we start to see an improvement in things like job market data, that will help the market go higher," he said, adding that investors would also be looking at corporate earnings for clue on market direction.

U.S. aluminium major Alcoa (AA.N) is due to kick off the second-quarter corporate earnings season later in the day.

The pan-European index has rallied 38 percent from a lifetime low hit on March 9, but the sharp bounce stalled last month and the benchmark is down 8.2 percent since June 10.

European auto makers .SXAP, which had got a lift from the spring rally, have also came under pressure recently, down nearly 17 percent since June 12.