European shares climb on vaccine hopes, mixed earnings

(Reuters) – European shares rebounded on Wednesday from losses in the previous session, bolstered by positive updates on a potential COVID-19 vaccine, while investors weighed a mixed bag of quarterly reports at the start of earnings season.

The pan-European STOXX 600 <.STOXX> rose 0.8% by 0720 GMT, with travel & leisure <.SXTP> and miners <.SXPP> leading gains.

Market sentiment got a boost after U.S. biotech firm Moderna Inc’s experimental vaccine for COVID-19 showed it was safe and provoked immune responses in an ongoing early-stage study.

Hopes were high among investors heading into a EU summit later this week that leaders will agree on a recovery fund of 750 billion euros for pandemic-hammered economies.

Swedish telecom operator Tele2 AB jumped 4.1% as it reaffirmed its 2020 earnings outlook and plans for an extra shareholder payout.

Semiconductor equipment maker ASML Holding NV slipped 1.3% despite forecasting overall growth for 2020.

British fashion brand Burberry dropped 5.1% as it warned second-quarter revenue will remain impacted by the pandemic.

(Reporting by Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)