European shares fall as U.S.-China tensions, virus cases rise

(Reuters) – European shares fell on Tuesday as investors worried about escalating U.S.-China tensions and a resurgence in regional coronavirus cases, knocking shares of growth-sensitive cyclical sectors lower.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index <.STOXX> fell 0.5% by 0713 GMT, with banks <.SX7P>, energy firms <.SX7E>, insurers <.SXIP> and automakers <.SXAP> falling between 0.8% and 0.9%.

Asian stocks made cautious gains after the Trump administration said it will tighten curbs on China’s Huawei Technologies Co [HWT.UL], to crack down on its access to commercially available chips, while ratcheting up tensions with Beijing.

UK-listed miner BHP Group , slipped 2.2% as it reported a 4% drop in annual profit that also missed analysts’ estimate. It also warned that most major world economies except China will have to bear the brunt of a coronavirus-led downturn this year.

Danish Jewellery maker Pandora tumbled 5.9% as it said the number of closed shops increased slightly in August, and the current level of store traffic is “well below” the level before the lockdowns.

Britain’s Marks & Spencer rose 1.8% after it revealed plans to cut a further 7,000 jobs, dealing the latest blow to the beleaguered retail sector from the COVID-19 crisis.

(Reporting by Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur)