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* STOXX 600 ends week with 2% gain
* Consumer companies, banks, miners weigh on markets
* DeliveryHero jumps as Q2 order growth doubles
(Updates to market close)
By Sruthi Shankar
July 3 (Reuters) - European stocks fell on Friday after
gaining ground during the week as a surge in U.S. coronavirus
cases made investors less optimistic about prospects for a
rebound in the global economy.
After opening largely flat, the pan-European STOXX 600 index
lost ground as the session wore on, with personal &
household goods makers, miners, automakers
and banks leading declines.
The benchmark index closed down 0.8%, with trading volumes
thin because of a U.S. market holiday. The index logged a 2%
weekly gain.
Hopes of a COVID-19 vaccine and signs of the global economy
recovering from the health crisis supported markets this week,
but investors have become less optimistic about further gains as
the United States set a new daily global record for COVID-19
cases on Thursday.
"The fear of another big(ger) drop in equity prices
continues to haunt financial markets. The opportunity to engage
in European assets also seems a bit limited," Thomas Flury, head
of FX Strategies at UBS Global Wealth Management wrote to
clients.
"For this, clearer signs of a recovery in international
trade should be visible. The data on this is constructive, but
not surprising to the upside."
A private survey showed that China's services sector
expanded at the fastest pace in over a decade in June as the
easing of lockdown measures revived consumer demand, though
companies continued to shed jobs.
A final reading of euro zone business activity showed a
coronavirus-inflicted plunge eased sharply last month as more
businesses reopened and people ventured out.
But there are doubts about the pace of the recovery with
some countries in Europe reimposing restrictions due to a surge
in COVID-19 cases.
In France, President Emmanuel Macron named Jean Castex, a
top civil servant and local mayor who orchestrated the country's
coronavirus lockdown exit strategy, as his new prime minister as
he acted to win back voters. France's CAC 40 ended down
0.8%, in-line with the broader markets.
Among individual movers, Germany's Delivery Hero
rose 4.7% after the takeaway food company said its order growth
nearly doubled in the second quarter.
France's utility firm EDF jumped 5.6% after it
revised upwards its 2020 nuclear output target.
UK retailer Next fell 4.6% after Goldman Sachs
downgraded the stock to "sell", while Primark-owner AB Foods
slipped 0.9% after the U.S. bank downgraded its stock to
"neutral".
(Reporting by Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika
Syamnath, Sriraj Kalluvila and Jane Merriman)
Next (NXT)
AB Foods (ABF)
