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Feb 4 (Reuters) - European shares were flat on Thursday
after a three-day rally on hopes of a swifter global economic
recovery and an upbeat sentiment in Italy as former European
Central Bank chief Mario Draghi took on the task of forming a
new government.
The STOXX 600 index .STOXX was flat in early trading,
while Milan's FTSE MIB index .FTMIB fell 0.2%.
Markets remained hopeful after Democrats pushed ahead on
Wednesday with a maneuver to pass U.S. President Joe Biden's
$1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package without Republican
support. Among early gainers, Bayer AG BAYGn.DE jumped 5.5% after
the German company struck a $2 billion deal to resolve future
legal claims that its widely used weedkiller Roundup causes
cancer. Deutsche Bank 's DBKGn.DE shares rose 0.6% after the German
lender swung to a small annual profit in 2020, its first since
2014, on the back of strong gains at its investment banking
division. The European blue-chip index .STOXX50 fell 0.2%, while the
euro zone blue-chip index .STOXX50E rose 0.1%.