L39;Oreal shares shine after sales beat expectations
Royal Unibrew, Sodexo gain on hiking forecasts
Germany slightly raises FY GDP forecast, source says
STOXX down 0.7 on the day and 1.7 for the week

April 19 Reuters European stocks dropped to their lowest levels in more than one month on Friday after a rampup in the Middle East conflict spooked investors, while L39;Oreal39;s shares rose as the French cosmetic giant39;s quarterly sales trounced estimates.

The continentwide STOXX 600 was down 0.7, as of 0837 GMT with most sectors in the red.

Indexes across major European economies such as Germany, France, Italy and Spain dropped between 0.7 and 1.2.

The benchmark index is on track for its biggest weekly drop, of 1.7, since last October as a mixed bag of corporate earnings and geopolitical jitters marred appetite for risky assets.

The escalating tensions between Israel and Iran also fuelled concerns that a spike in commodity prices could rekindle inflation and delay the European Central Bank39;s highly anticipated interest rate cut in June.

Offsetting the glum mood, shares in L39;Oreal rose 4.8 after the beauty company posted a near 10 rise in firstquarter sales on a likeforlike basis.

Sodexo rose 2.3 after the food caterer said it expects organic revenue growth this year to be at the top of its 68 forecast and also posted halfyear sales broadly in line with estimates.

Still, as markets gear up for the full volley of corporate reports in the weeks to follow,…