*

Euro Zone CPI due at 0900 GMT

*

Sweden's Riksbank cuts interest rates

*

German producer prices dropped 0.8% YoY

*

STOXX 600 up 0.2%

(Updated at 0830 GMT)

By Pranav Kashyap

Aug 20 (Reuters) - European shares inched higher on

Tuesday, but investors refrained from placing large bets ahead

of key euro zone data, while energy stocks were the biggest

laggard following a drop in global oil prices.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index was up 0.2% after

opening flat. The benchmark gauge touched a three-week high in

the previous session.

All regional bourses were trading in the green, except

London's FTSE 100, which fell 0.5%

German producer prices decreased 0.8% on the year in July,

in line with forecasts. The German benchmark DAX ticked

0.2% higher.

Swedish shares ticked lower by 0.3% after the

country's central bank cut its key interest rate by quarter of

percentage point to 3.5%.

Markets were focussed on July's consumer prices reading from

the euro zone at 0900 GMT, for more light on the European

Central Bank's rate path. Economists polled by Reuters expect it

to remain steady at 2.6% from last month.

Technology stocks boosted the STOXX 600 with a 1.2%

jump, led by a 2.5% jump in heavyweight ASML Holdings.

Oil and gas sector weighed the most, dropping 1.5%,

as crude prices edged lower on easing geopolitical risks and

weak demand from China.

European equities are currently in a consolidation phase as

investors stayed on the sidelines ahead of the key economic data

that is set to drop through the week.

Spotlight this week will remain on the comments by Federal

Reserve Chair Jerome Powell at the Jackson Hole conference in

Wyoming on Friday.

A slew of Fed officials have signalled their intent for a

September rate cut in the last one month and markets expect that

Powell will also stay on script when he addresses the central

bank's annual gathering.

"Do expect a dovish tone from Powell, but maybe not dovish

enough because many key questions on rates of policy will not be

answered," said Geoffrey Yu, senior EMEA market strategist at

BNY.

Yu also noted that European equities will only get affected

if what's said at Jackson Hole is much more out of line compared

to expectations.

Among other movers, BT fell 5.2% after rival media

company Sky said it will launch its broadband services on the

internet provider CityFibre's network.

(Reporting by Pranav Kashyap in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry

Jacob-Phillips and Varun H K)