* European shares fall on lack of progress in trade talks
* Wirecard hit by report EY refused to sign off on Singapore audit
* Kingfisher posts steeper sales drop, shares lead losers
* STOXX 600 down 0.6% at two-week low
Welcome to the home for real-time coverage of European equity markets brought to you by Reuters
stocks reporters and anchored today by Danilo Masoni. Reach him on Messenger to share your
thoughts on market moves: danilo.masoni.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net
SOME PENT-UP DEMAND TO BE UNLEASHED? (1011 GMT)
A post-mortem of the Q3 earnings season by Barclays analysts shows a mild recovery is in
sight for 2020, although the general sentiment among companies towards the global economy has
turned more negative this quarter.
With some progress on the trade war and Brexit, Barclays believes some pent-up demand could
be unleashed if these headwinds were to be removed for good.
The relief would likely stimulate activity and act as a major positive catalyst for 2020.
"Leading indicators such as the credit impulse in China and money supply in Europe have both
been turning up in recent months, arguing for an uptick in activity as we move into 2020,"
equity strategy analysts led by Emmanuel Cau say.
They however believe consensus estimate of 9%-10% earnings growth in 2020 might be "too
optimistic" and foresee mid-single-digit growth.
(Thyagaraju Adinarayan)
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OPENING SNAPSHOT: STOXX AT 2-WEEK LOW, DEFENSIVES OUTPERFORM (0838 GMT)
The return of some caution over a possible Sino-U.S. trade deal and after an euphoric run to
April 2015 highs, European shares have started the session in clear risk off fashion: losses are
broad-based with defensive stocks managing to outperform - but just slightly.
The STOXX 600 regional benchmark was down 0.6% at a two week low in early deals,
with banks and basic materials leading the drop, while defensive utilities and healthcare were
moving just above parity.
In single stocks, a disappointing trading update at Kingfisher put its shares on
course for their biggest one-day drop since March 2018, down 7.5% at a two week low.
Wirecard was another casualty today, down 5.8%, as its troubles continue. German
business daily Handelsblatt reported auditor EY refused to sign off on the Singapore audit of
Wirecard for 2017, citing irregularities.
(Danilo Masoni)
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ON OUR RADAR: FUTURES SLIP, WIRECARD TROUBLES, KINGFISHER RESULTS (0754 GMT)
The lack of immediate progress in trade talks between the United States and China is set to
weigh on European shares, keeping them just below four year peaks, while the televised debate in
the UK between Johnson and Corbyn did little to change expectations over the upcoming Dec. 12
election and had little impact on the forex market.
As a result, futures on the trade sensitive DAX led the way lower in Europe, down 0.4%,
while FTSE futures fell 0.2%.
In corporate news, Wirecard is set to come under renewed selling pressure after
German business daily Handelsblatt reported auditor EY refused to sign off on the Singapore
audit of Wirecard for 2017, citing irregularities. Its shares were down 7.7% in early Frankfurt
trade.
There are also some earnings reports in the UK to digest.
Home improvement retailer Kingfisher is expected to open 5% lower after it reported
another fall in underlying sales in its latest quarter, underlining the task facing its new
boss.
Fevertree Drinks is seen falling 5% after the premium tonic water maker said it was
still being hurt by slack consumer spending in Britain, even as other regions, especially the
US, were performing well.
Other stock movers: Buoyant warship division keeps Babcock on course for 2020 targets
; Swiss eyecare company Alcon posts another loss, announces revamp;
Aviva reshuffles business into five divisions, sells Hong Kong stake; UK's United
Utilities profit gains on regulatory incentives
(Danilo Masoni)
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MORNING CALL: LOWER (0623 GMT)
European shares are expected to open lower this morning following losses in Asia overnight
as the trade dispute between Washington and Beijing drags on, leaving investors hostage to
conflicting signals over whether the parties would reach a deal.
Spreadbetters at IG expect London's FTSE to open 14 points lower at 7,310, Frankfurt's DAX
to open 40 points lower at 13,181 and Paris' CAC to open 13 points lower at 5,896.
"... in the absence of a credible and comprehensive trade deal roadmap, investors might
think optimism around Phase one has peaked and turned more defensive to protect profits by
taking chips off the table," said Stephen Innes, chief Asia market strategist at AxiTrader.
(Danilo Masoni)
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(Reporting by Danilo Masoni, Joice Alves, Julien Ponthus and Thyagaraju Adinarayan)