UPDATE 2-European shares end higher on hopes of pandemic plateauing

* Cyclicals tech, autos, banks lead gains
* Another sell-off likely as data worsens - analysts
* French utility EDF sees slump in domestic output

(Adds comments, updates to close)
By Sagarika Jaisinghani and Shreyashi Sanyal
April 16 (Reuters) - European shares rose on Thursday as
daily coronavirus death tolls in Spain and Italy eased, adding
to signs the pandemic was plateauing.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index .STOXX added 0.6%,
climbing for the sixth time in seven days.
Gains were driven by technology .SX8P , autos .SXAP and
financial .SX7P stocks, while the healthcare sector .SXDP
gained 2.8%, powered by a 10% jump in Danish food ingredients
maker Chr Hansen CHRH.CO .
The company said it had not seen a negative impact from the
coronavirus but rather a short-term boost in demand as consumers
opt for at-home consumption such as frozen pizzas and probiotics
for immune system support. "Today's moves are mostly driven by hope and markets are
eager to hear any news about lockdown exit strategies and the
re-opening of economies," said Stefan Koopman, senior market
economist at Rabobank.
The benchmark STOXX 600 has risen to near one-month highs
since hitting a trough in March with central banks announcing a
raft of stimulus measures, but analysts have warned about
another sell-off with economic damage piling up and GDP
estimates slashed.
Latest data showed U.S. jobless claims fell slightly to 5.2
million last week from an upwardly revised 6.62 million the week
before, but the total figure for the past month still topped 20
million. U.S. President Donald Trump is also expected to announce
"new guidelines" for re-opening the economy on Thursday as he
said data suggested the country had passed the peak on new
coronavirus infections. "The market set-up remains unclear as the debate around
easing social distancing rules is constantly rebooting
expectations for a sharp V-shaped recovery," said Stephen Innes,
markets strategist at AxiCorp.
"Risk sentiment now seems to depend on how quickly economies
can re-open without risking overloading healthcare systems if
there's a secondary spread."
In Europe, analysts expect a corporate recession to deepen
in 2020, with earnings for STOXX 600 companies falling 22% in
the first quarter and 34.2% in the second, according to IBES
data from Refinitiv.
"With lockdowns to endure in most major economies throughout
April and for many into May, financial pressures on firms are
set to intensify this earnings season," said Simon MacAdam,
global economist at Capital Economics.
French state-controlled utility EDF EDF.PA fell 5.8% after
it forecast a sharp drop in its domestic nuclear power output
due to a fall in business activity caused by the health crisis.
But German online fashion retailer Zalando ZALG.DE jumped
6.2% as it said it was optimistic about the second quarter after
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Europe's winners and losers https://reut.rs/2VdAafH
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