Europe's STOXX 600 regains steam, tech stocks lead charge
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STOXX 600 up 0.5%
Putin open to discuss Ukraine peace deal with Trump - sources
Sage jumps on FY24 profit surge, $508 mln share buyback
ArgenX climbs on Vyvgart drug's progress
Updated at 0920 GMT
By Ankika Biswas and Joao Manuel Vicente Mauricio
Nov 20 (Reuters) -Europe's main stock index was set to snap a three-session streak of declines onWednesday astechnology stocks rebounded, while safe-haven bids took a backseat as investors monitored ongoing developments around the Ukraine-Russia conflict.
A day after Russia lowered its threshold for a nuclear strike, Reuters reported Vladimir Putin's openness to discuss a Ukraine ceasefire deal with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, provided it rulesout major territorial concessions and Kyiv abandons plans to join NATO.
The pan-European STOXX 600 .STOXX was up 0.5%as of 0920 GMT, after touching a three-month low on Tuesday amid an investor rush to safe-haven assets.
Main bourses in Germany .GDAXI, France .FCHI, and Spain .IBEX advanced between0.4% and 0.9%.
Supporting risky bets, the Swiss franc CHF= and U.S. government bond prices dipped, while the dollar =USD touched a one-week low in early trade.
"Despite (Tuesday's) knee-jerk reaction to Russia-Ukraine concerns, I don't think any investor is going to just put that off to one side because the world order is shifting somewhat," said Danni Hewson, head of financial analysis, AJBell.
Focus is also on the U.S. President-elect's administration appointments, including the search for a Treasury secretary. Wall Street CEO Howard Lutnick will lead Trump's trade and tariff strategy.
"The biggest potential concern (on Trumpappointments) is tariffs, because that would have a massive impact on European economy and thereby markets, particularly with the likes of inflation," Hewson said.
Aiding the technology index's .SX8P 1% gain, Sage Group SGE.L jumped 17% after announcingbetter-than-expected annualoperating profit and the software firm's launch of a 400-million-pound share buyback.
The tech sector's performance outlook also hinges on quarterly results from the world'smost valuable company Nvidia NVDA.O, seen as a barometer for the sector's shift to AI, due after market close.
Meanwhile, the ECB has warned about a "bubble" in AI-related stocks, which could burst abruptly if investors' rosy expectations are not met.
Boosting theconstruction and materials index .SXOP, Holcim HOLN.S rose 3% after J.P. Morgan upgraded the building material supplier's stock to "overweight" from "neutral".
ArgenX ARGX.BR gained 4% after the Belgian biotech company announced progress in the development of its flagship drug Vyvgart.
La Française des Jeux FDJ.PA fell 5.5% after Credit Agricole Assurances unveiled plans to sell 2.2% of the French gaming group's share capital.
British Land BLND.L slipped 3% after the commercial property firm posted a marginal half-year profit rise.
Elsewhere, UK stocks .FTSE underperformed regional peers with a 0.3% gain after domestic inflation came in above the central bank's 2% target last month, underscoring the BOE's cautionon rate cuts.
Reporting by Ankika Biswas and Joao Manuel Mauricio in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu and Devika Syamnath
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