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March 4 Reuters European shares started the week on a subdued tone as investors remained cautious ahead of the European Central Bank39;s monetary policy meeting later in the week, while strength in technology stocks partially offset losses in other sectors.

The panEuropean STOXX 600 was up 0.1 by 922 GMT, scaling another record high and was less than a couple of points shy of the 500 mark. On the contrary, Germany39;s benchmark DAX was up 0.1, but came off a sevenday streak of record highs.

Top performer technology index tracked a global rally in AI shares and jumped 1.1, while the healthcare sector was up 0.7, offsetting weakness in ratesensitive shares.

Interestrate dependent real estate and basic resources indexes both dropped 0.7, leading sectoral declines, as uncertainty around ratecut grows ahead of the ECB39;s monetary policy meeting.

The ECB meets on Thursday and is expected to keep rates at a record high 4, but the central bank is also likely to lower its outlook for inflation in a nod to eventual cuts. 0ECBWATCH

In the last week, data showed euro zone inflation dipped in February, but underlying price growth proved to be sticky. Another data set showed manufacturing activity continued to contract last month.

First into the 2023 economic slowdown, with…