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* China, U.S. retail sales data sap global mood
* STOXX 600 still records second week of gains
* All eyes on U.S. stimulus, U.S.-China trade talks
* Travel stocks lead European losses
(Updates to market close)
By Sruthi Shankar
Aug 14 (Reuters) - European shares slid in thin summer
trading on Friday as travel stocks slumped after Britain added
more countries to its quarantine list, while weak data from
across the globe raised doubts over the pace of economic
recovery from the coronavirus crisis.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell 1.2%, with
travel and leisure stocks down 2.3% to lead sectoral
losses.
UK-based airlines and tour operators TUI
, Easyjet, British Airways-owner IAG
fell between 4.8% and 8.4% after the British government said it
would impose a 14-day quarantine on arrivals from France,
beginning on Saturday.
It also added the Netherlands, Malta and three other
countries to the list.
France, the second-most popular overseas destination after
Spain for Britons, warned that it would reciprocate.
Paris-listed shares fell 1.6%, with Air France KLM
dropping 5.8%.
"What we have got is a significant amount of uncertainty
over the evolution of coronavirus pandemic, which is maintaining
a risk premium for the transportation, leisure and hospitality
sectors," said Alastair George, head strategist at Edison
Investment Research.
Global stock markets also headed lower after lacklustre
retail sales numbers from the United States and China, while
data confirmed that the euro zone suffered the biggest drop ever
recorded in employment and gross domestic product in the second
quarter.
Worries over upcoming U.S.-China trade talks amid souring
diplomatic relations between the two countries and a lack of
progress in negotiations over U.S. economic stimulus, a major
factor that has pushed U.S. stocks near all-time highs, also
weighed on the mood.
Despite Friday's pullback, the STOXX 600 recorded its second
straight week of gains as huge quantities of stimulus coursing
through the financial system and optimism over the development
of a COVID-19 vaccine made investors buyers of equities.
"We do believe there's value in European equities," said
Matthias Scheiber, global head of multi asset portfolio
management at Wells Fargo Asset Management.
"It will be a long road to full employment and we will see
job losses. However, Europe has managed reasonably well with
various fiscal and monetary schemes."
Among individual movers, German container shipping line
Hapag-Lloyd surged 13.3% as it nearly doubled net
profit in the first half of 2020 and kept its full-year outlook
intact.
Rovio Entertainment, the maker of the 10-year-old
"Angry Birds" mobile game series, rose 1.6% after reporting a
160% jump in second-quarter adjusted operating profit, helped by
increased player engagement amid COVID-19 lockdowns.
(Reporting by Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun
Koyyur)
International Airlines (IAG)
