Tech, healthcare weakness drives European shares lower

Swiss technology accessories make Logitech fell 6% after Bloomberg reported that Apple had stopped selling headphones and wireless speakers from rivals. French waste and water firm Suez jumped 4.4% after rival Veolia succeeded in buying 29.9% of the company owned by power group Engie.

European stocks eased from a two-week high on Tuesday as a slide in technology and healthcare stocks along with mixed corporate updates tempered optimism about a U.S. stimulus package that bolstered Wall Street indexes overnight.

The pan-European STOXX 600 slipped 0.4%, with the German DAX and France's CAC 40 down about 0.3%, while London's FTSE 100 fell 0.5%. Global markets saw a relief rally as U.S. President Donald Trump was discharged from the hospital following treatment for COVID-19 and the prospects for a fresh U.S. stimulus package appeared to brighten.

"While it is more than possible that Trump's case of COVID-19 will return to the top of the table at some point, presently his discharge has left the markets looking a bit aimless," Connor Campbell, a financial analyst at Spreadex wrote. Technology and healthcare stocks, among the top performers in Europe this year, led the declines.

Wall Street's tech-heavy Nasdaq futures came under pressure after a draft seen by Reuters showed that a U.S. House's antitrust report on Big Tech firms contains a "thinly veiled call to break up" the companies. Meanwhile, in Europe, a newspaper reported that Scotland is looking to impose a two-week mini lockdown from Friday, while Spain became the first Western European nation to surpass a tally of 800,000 COVID-19 cases.

Puma slid 2.4% after the French luxury group Kering said it had completed the sale of a 5.9% stake in the German sportswear group. Swiss technology accessories make Logitech fell 6% after Bloomberg reported that Apple had stopped selling headphones and wireless speakers from rivals.

French waste and water firm Suez jumped 4.4% after rival Veolia succeeded in buying 29.9% of the company owned by power group Engie. Shares of Veolia and Engie rose by nearly 1% each.

Sweden's Telia gained 5.4% after it agreed to sell its international carrier business, Telia Carrier, to Polhem Infra for 9,450 million SEK 

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