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* China willing to make partial trade deal with U.S.
* U.S.-China trade talks set to resume on Thursday
* Bookmaker GVC rises as it raises FY forecast again
* Airbus slips, defence unit sees cash challenge
(New throughout, updates prices)
By Susan Mathew
Oct 9 (Reuters) - German shares logged their best day in six
weeks on Wednesday, leading the charge among European shares, as
sentiment was lifted by signs of progress in U.S.-China trade
relations a day ahead of high-level talks between the two
parties.
Reports that China was still open to agreeing to a partial
trade deal with the United States, and that Beijing was offering
to increase its annual purchases of U.S. agricultural products,
came as signs of compromise, but analysts remain skeptical.
"At first glance, recent news provides at least some
reason to be a bit more optimistic about the U.S.-China trade
talks," wrote Raoul Leering, head of international trade
analysis at ING in a note.
"But there's scant evidence that the two sides are willing
to change their positions enough to break out of the current
deadlock."
Exporter-heavy German shares added 1% and the
pan-European STOXX 600 index rose 0.4% recovering from
Tuesday's 1% decline when hostility from both sides in the
U.S.-China dispute dented sentiment.
A year into it, headlines from the trade war continue to
inject volatility into markets, with STOXX 600 index giving up
as much as it gains, putting it on course for a barely changed
week.
Trade-reliant sectors such as technology stocks,
auto and part makers and some luxury goods stocks were
among the biggest boosts to the index.
Among the top performers was the owner of British gambling
firm Ladbrokes, GVC Holdings Plc, which gained 5.1%
after it raised its annual core earnings forecast for the second
time in three months.
Along with a rally in Ryanair and easyJet
after a day of steep falls, it lifted last session's worst
performing travel and leisure sector 0.5%.
London's blue chips were among the markets that
gained the least as the European Union said a Brexit deal was
"very difficult" if not entirely impossible.
EU officials denied the bloc is preparing a major concession
for Britain to secure a Brexit deal after a report by the Times
newspaper said the EU was ready to offer a mechanism for the
Northern Irish assembly to leave a new so-called Ireland
backstop.
The deeply uncertain future of Brexit, coupled with mounting
concerns around the economically damaging Sino-U.S. trade war,
have knocked around 3% off the benchmark index so far this
month, erasing its September gains.
Among other stocks, Airbus lost 0.3% after sources
said the planemaker's defence and space unit issued an internal
warning of significant challenges in meeting cash flow and other
targets for 2019.
(Reporting by Medha Singh and Susan Mathew in Bengaluru
Editing by Bernard Orr and Matthew Lewis)
