LIVE MARKETS-Shares shrug off weak European data but "peak growth" narrative builds

* European stocks rise >1 pct * Wall Street, Asia surged on China-U.S. trade talks March 27 - Welcome to the home for real-time coverage of European equity markets brought toyou by Reuters stocks reporters and anchored today by Helen Reid. Reach her on Messenger toshare your thoughts on market moves: helen.reid.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net SHARES SHRUG OFF WEAK EUROPEAN DATA BUT "PEAK GROWTH" NARRATIVE BUILDS (0950 GMT) Economic sentiment in the euro zone slipped for a third month in a row in March as managersin manufacturing, services and retail became slightly less optimistic, European Commission datajust showed. But stocks are taking this in their stride and have even accelerated their risefrom 1.2 percent to 1.5 percent since the data was published. A whole bunch of research this morning ahead of the publication noted, like DNB's dailynote, that "Eurozone macro data surprises have been more negative than positive recently" andthat "growth is strong, but no longer accelerating". For CMC Markets, "the beginning of possible micro fissures in the European growth story"and "momentum indicators ... flashing warning signs" may be an explanation as to why Europeanmarkets are having a hard time keeping up with their U.S. counterparts. In a strategy note on European equities this morning, HSBC said that its "economics team'sview of GDP growth momentum fading through the course of this year" backed investing in longerduration fixed income and in stocks with higher dividend yield for their "defensive attributes". On the trading floor however the consensus seems to be that the euro zone's economic healthstill backs an optimistic view of its shares. There can be "a lot of noise in macro data in thenear-term", Chris Dyer, director of global equity at Eaton Vance just told us. "Generally we think the European economy is on a good footing", Dyer, who is overweightEuropean equities, said, adding that the weakness in economic data will only become a concern ifit continues. Here's a chart by DNB showing the loss of growth momentum in Europe: (Helen Reid and Julien Ponthus) ***** OPENING SNAPSHOT: EUROPEAN STOCKS BOUNCE (0727 GMT) European shares are joining in a global relief rally in risk assets as trade tensions ease.Sectors which were hit hardest over the past few sessions, such as autos, basicresources and tech, are the biggest gainers early on. The biggest individual mover so far is France's Casino, which has jumped around 6percent after its Monoprix chain agreed to sell products via Amazon. This shows just how crucialit is for companies to demonstrate that they are keeping up with the times and exploring onlineopportunities. Regarding the spreadbetters and ESMA's restrictions on CFDs, it's a mixed bag following adecidedly negative start, with IG down slightly but both CMC and Plus500 making gains. Here's your opening snapshot: (Kit Rees) ***** WHAT'S ON THE RADAR FOR THE OPEN (0649 GMT) European stocks are set to surge with futures climbing 1.4 to 2.2 percent across the majorbenchmarks, riding the wave of rising equities worldwide after Wall Street indices had theirstrongest day in years as investors bet on a trade war détente. Retail stocks will be ones to watch after French supermarket group Casino struck a deal withAmazon to make groceries from its Monoprix chain of stores available on Amazon’s Prime Nowservice to Parisian customers this year. The partnership extends Amazon’s reach into the European grocery market, and while Casinoshares are seen rising 3 to 5 percent, the news could shake investors’ confidence in retailnames that are more behind the curve. In M&A news, GlaxoSmithKline shares are expected to rise 3 to 4 percent after the pharmacompany announced it was buying out Novartis’ stake in their consumer healthcare joint venturefor $13 billion. Novartis is seen up 1 percent. Another corporate break-up story from Akzo Nobel which is to sell its Specialty Chemicalsbusiness for $12.6 billion to U.S. private equity firm Carlyle Group and Singapore’s GIC –ending the simplification effort which began as the paint maker sought to evade a takeover fromPPG in April 2017. Its shares are set to rise 2 to 4 percent. Spreadbetters such as IG Group, CMC Markets and Plus500 are seen down 2 percent premarketafter a move from European markets regulator ESMA to crack down on contract-for-difference (CFD)trades offered to retail clients. (Helen Reid) ***** MORNING HEADLINE ROUND-UP (0637 GMT) Here's a round-up of key headlines for European companies this morning - note the news thatCasino's Monoprix is going to be teaming up with Amazon to sell groceries on Prime Nowin Paris. Casino's shares are seen up as much as 5 percent premarket. GSK buys Novartis stake in consumer healthcare venture for $13 bln H&M Q1 pretax dives in line with expectations, flags more markdowns Deutsche Bank seeks to replace CEO with Goldman executive -report Amazon wins grocery foothold in France through Monoprix deal Galliford Try to raise 158 mln stg to cover Carillion project costs Nordex sees lower sales, margins as wind industry tightens Akzo Nobel to sell unit to Carlyle, GIC for 10.1 bln euros (Kit Rees) ***** EUROPEAN STOCK FUTURES SURGE (0610 GMT) Futures for the major European stock markets have opened sharply higher, rising 1.1 to 1.8percent with the DAX in the lead, as investors place bets on a strong bounce at the open. Meanwhile analysts are still mulling what caused the late-afternoon slump in sharesyesterday. Here's Peel Hunt strategist Ian Williams: "The trigger was not immediately obvious with neither further strength in the euro, or thelatest wave of Russian diplomatic expulsions, especially convincing reasons for such a move. Amore worrying interpretation is that investors may be taking advantage of even the most modestof rallies to lighten their equity exposure." If Williams is right we may see a volatile session today as well - but for the moment allsigns are pointing to a strong rebound for the European market. (Helen Reid) ***** BULLS TO KEEP THE UPPER HAND (0548 GMT) Goldman Sachs' Bear/Bull indicator is above 70%, a level normally associated with animminent bear market (see below). But the GS team led by Peter Oppenheimer reckons relativelyattractive equity valuations will protect markets from a big drawdown, at least for now. There's also a wide spread in the underlying variables behind the indicator: very low levelsof unemployment and strong growth momentum are normally accompanied with "tighter monetarypolicy, a flatter yield curve and rising core inflation," notes GS. "But these remain subduedand without these risks rising, the prospect of a recession and 'cyclical' bear market is low." Valuation meanwhile is becoming less of a risk, they add - the forward consensus PE for theMSCI AC World is back to its 1990 average and below its average excluding Tech stocks. Highvaluations are mostly confined to the U.S. market. Furthermore, free cash flow yields have increased along with P/E ratios, and the total cashreturn from equities (dividend yield + buyback yield) has risen in most markets. So the overall message from GS is: don't panic! The bulls will prevail, at least for now... (Helen Reid) ***** MORNING CALL: EUROPEAN STOCKS TO BOUNCE BACK STRONGLY(0520 GMT) Good morning and welcome to Live Markets. Risk appetite is back! European stocks are called to open strongly higher today after a weakclose yesterday. They're being pushed up by the equities rally on Wall Street and in Asiaovernight greeting news that the U.S. and China are holding behind-the-scenes trade talks. White House officials are asking China to cut tariffs on imported cars, allow foreignmajority ownership of financial services firms and buy more U.S.-made semiconductors, accordingto a person familiar with the discussions. Asian shares bounced back overnight with the Nikkei up 1.7 percent and Chinese blue-chipsgaining 1.2 percent. The gains came after a stellar session on Wall Street with the Dowdelivering its third-biggest point gain ever, jumping 2.8 percent, while the S&P 500 gained 2.7percent and the Nasdaq surged up 3.3 percent. A negative currency effect could weigh on European stocks today, though, with the euro stillnear the six-week high against the dollar it touched yesterday. It had its biggest one-daypercentage gain since June 2017 yesterday. Spreadbetters call the DAX 183 points higher at 11,971, the CAC 40 up 60 points at 5,127,and the FTSE 100 78 points higher at 6,966. (Helen Reid) ***** (Reporting by Helen Reid, Danilo Masoni, Julien Ponthus and Kit Rees)