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* Fed minutes spark risk-off mood globally
* Hotel groups IHG, Accor surge on merger report
* Antofagasta slides after H1 profit slump
(Updates to market close)
By Sruthi Shankar
Aug 20 (Reuters) - Miners and banks led declines in European
stocks, hit by a wave of selling across global markets on
Thursday after the U.S. Federal Reserve signalled a long path of
recovery for the world's largest economy.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index .STOXX fell 1.1% to hit a
10-day low, with economically sensitive sectors such as miners
.SXPP , banks .SX7P , automakers .SXAP and oil and gas
.SXEP falling between 1.6% and 2.9%.
The Fed minutes showed that policymakers were doubtful of a
quick economic rebound and may stick with aggressive stimulus
measures for a much longer period, driving Wall Street indexes
off their record highs. A rise in U.S. weekly jobless claims to above 1 million also
added to the downbeat sentiment. Meanwhile in Europe, worries over a pick-up in coronavirus
cases kept investors on edge. Britain recorded its
second-highest daily total of new virus cases since June 21,
while Germany has also seen cases accelerating in recent weeks.
"The impact of this (rise in COVID-19 cases) is not yet
evident in the official economic data, but the high frequency
figures show a clear flattening of activity – this will
undoubtedly come through in the data," Derek Halpenny, head of
research for global markets EMEA at MUFG, wrote in a note.
A preliminary survey of European purchasing managers is due
to be released on Friday. The numbers are likely to show the
pick-up in business activity stagnated in August after a rebound
in July.
A full bounceback from the euro zone's deepest recession on
record will take two years or more, a Reuters poll showed, with
economists saying there is a high risk of the job recovery
reversing by the end of 2020. Among individual stocks, Chilean miner Antofagasta ANTO.L
fell 5.6% after it posted a 22.4% plunge in first-half core
earnings on lower copper sales, but said it would pay an interim
dividend. Payments processor Adyen NV ADYEN.AS , which has doubled in
value in the past year, slipped 2.7% as it reported slower
earnings growth. Intercontinental Hotels Group IHG.L rose 0.9% and France's
Accor ACCP.PA gained 2.3% after a French newspaper reported
the hotel operators had examined a merger. German real estate firm Tag Immobilien TEGG.DE jumped 6.9%
as it confirmed its guidance for 2020 and said raising it during
the year was a possibility.