UPDATE 2-European shares rise on recovery hopes, LVMH leads

* LVMH, Airbus rise on upbeat outlook from research firms
* Fresenius tumbles on issuing profit warning
* Basic materials dip as copper, iron ore price decline
* BP slides on first loss in a decade

(Updates to close)
By Shreyashi Sanyal and Susan Mathew
Feb 2 (Reuters) - European shares rose on Tuesday on hopes
of a faster economic recovery, with some upbeat economic growth
data and encouraging outlook on big names such as Airbus and
LVMH putting a pan-regional index on course to erase last week's
hefty losses.
Europe's STOXX 600 index .STOXX closed higher for a second
straight session, up 1.3% on broad-based gains after losing over
3% last week on concerns around the slow rollout of COVID-19
vaccines in the euro zone.
Preliminary data on Tuesday showed the euro zone economy
contracted by less than expected in the fourth quarter of 2020
as large economies Germany and Spain still managed slight
expansions. "But with lockdowns extended well into the first quarter,
another technical recession is in the making," said Bert Colijn,
senior euro zone economist at ING.
Luxury brand owners LVMH LVMH.PA and Kering PRTP.PA
jumped 3.4% and 1% respectively after brokerage Berenberg
recommended the stocks, noting long-term structural drivers of
demand for luxury products remain intact. Planemaker Airbus AIR.PA rose after a Morgan Stanley
upgrade on overlooked production increases.
Anticipation of strong results from Amazon AMZN.O and
Google-parent Alphabet GOOGL.O and hopes of a $1.9 trillion
U.S. COVID-19 relief package in the United States also kept
sentiment buoyed. Medical device maker Coloplast COLOb.CO and Sweden's
Indutrade INDT.ST were the top gainers on STOXX 600 on topping
quarterly earnings.
Basic materials .SXPP was the only in the red as copper
and iron ore prices tanked, while gains in the oil sector were
limited by a 4.5% slide in BP BP.L after it reported its first
loss in a decade. IRONORE/ MET/L
London's blue-chip FTSE 100 .FTSE gained the least among
regional peers, weighed upon by reports that the UK variant of
the coronavirus has developed a new, concerning mutation that
could reduce the efficacy of vaccines. .L
Fresenius Medical Care FMEG.DE tumbled 10.3% after the
world's No.1 kidney dialysis firm warned its adjusted net profit
was likely to drop this year. FRENZY PAUSES
Silver prices dropped on Tuesday, halting a rally to near
eight-year highs in the previous session that was the latest
move in two weeks of turmoil on financial markets fuelled by a
pack of Reddit-centered individual investors. A pause in a social media driven rally that drove up prices
of the commodity as well as certain stocks including GameStop
Corp GME.N has helped calm worries about potential losses
incurred by certain hedge funds causing disruption to markets as
a whole.
Finnish shares of Nokia NOKIA.HE , also caught up in the
frenzy, slid 5.3%.