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Sept 2 (Reuters) - European shares opened higher on
Wednesday after losing for four straight sessions, with media
and entertainment stocks bouncing back from steep losses in the
prior session.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index .STOXX rose 1.1% in early
trade, after losing more than 2% over the past four sessions.
Middling economic data and a lack of clear progress against
the coronavirus pandemic have kept the index in a tight trading
range since June.
Media stocks .SXMP surged about 1.6% after closing at a
more than three-week low in the prior session.
Data showed that German retail sales fell unexpectedly in
July, indicating that household spending in Europe's largest
economy was still on the lam from the coronavirus. But German
stocks rose .GDAXI more than 1%. In corporate news, Barratt Developments Plc BDEV.L ,
Britain's biggest housebuilder, surged more than 5% after it
flagged an improvement in forward sales, despite reporting a
near 30% fall in annual housing completions and revenue.