Piraeus Port narrows Q1 loss on higher sales

* Q1 net loss narrows to 766,000 euros

* Sales up 47 pct to 27.9 million euros

ATHENS, May 26 (Reuters) - Piraeus Port (OLP), Greece's biggest port and one of the largest in the Mediterranean, narrowed its net loss in the first quarter, helped by higher sales, it said on Tuesday.

OLP reported a 766,200 euro loss compared with a loss of 5 million in the same period last year, on sales which rose 47 percent to 27.9 million euros due to increased traffic at the company's container terminal.

China's Cosco Pacific (1199.HK), the world's fifth-largest port operator, last year signed a 3.4 billion euro deal with OLP to run cargo facilities at Piraeus for 35 years, starting from October 2009.

OLP, which is 74 percent state-owned, said the deal would guarantee the company an annual income of 50 million euros.

At 0831 GMT, OLP stock was trading down 2.5 percent to 13.50 euros, lagging the Athens general index .ATG, which was down 1.2 percent. OLP has gained 43 percent since the start of the year, compared with a 28 percent rise in the general index. (Reporting by Harry Papachristou; Editing by David Holmes)