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STOXX 600 down 0.4%

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UK's Rightmove ( RTMVF ) jumps on potential takeover bid from

Australia's

REA Group ( RPGRF )

(Updated at 0813 GMT)

By Shubham Batra

Sept 2 (Reuters) - European shares started the week on a

tepid note, led by weakness in miners amid a data-heavy week,

while investors awaited speeches from European Central Bank

(ECB) officials for clues on the central bank's policy

trajectory this week.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index was down 0.4%, off

its record highs last week, after inflation in the euro zone

fell to 2.2% in August, its slowest pace since July 2021.

All major European markets, including those in Germany,

Spain and Italy, were also down around 0.4%.

"Everyone is taking a breather after a pretty hectic August

in terms of market price action at least and really looking for

signals on the macro side that the soft landing scenarios are in

place and that central banks can begin to lower rates," said

Richard Flax, chief investment officer of Moneyfarm.

ECB policymakers are increasingly at odds on the outlook for

growth, a rift that could shape the rate cut debate for months,

with some fearing a recession and others focusing on lingering

inflation pressures, sources close to the debate said.

Money markets have almost fully priced in a 25 basis-point

rate cut by the ECB on Sept. 12, with total easing of around 60

bps by the end of 2024, according to LSEG's interest rate

probabilities.

Consumer discretionary sectors, including automobiles

and retail, weighed on the markets with a nearly

1% decline.

Miners were down 0.8% after most base metals began

September on a weaker note as the market trimmed bets for

aggressive policy easing in the U.S. and China's manufacturing

data heightened demand concerns.

Among individual movers, Rightmove ( RTMVF ) jumped 21% after

REA Group ( RPGRF ), the property listings company majority-owned

by News Corp ( NWSA ), said it was considering buying the

British firm.

German peer Scout24 also advanced 3.3%.

Sanofi's shares rose 2.8% in spite of the company

missing the main goal of two late-stage trials to treat

relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS).

A survey showed that the downturn in Germany's manufacturing

sector continued to gather pace in August, with the HCOB final

Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for German manufacturing

falling to 42.4 in August from 43.2 in July.

For the region, manufacturing activity remained mired in

contraction in August, with the data suggesting a recovery could

be some way off as demand fell at its sharpest pace this year.

As markets closely eye more economic data from the region

and a slew of speeches from ECB officials, the week will

culminate in the U.S. payrolls data on Friday, which could

recaliberate investors' interest rate expectations.