UPDATE 1-London shares dip as surging virus cases dim rebound hopes

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* FirstGroup tumbles on flagging going concern doubts

* HSBC slides to the bottom of the FTSE 100

* Banks, retailers, travel stocks lead declines

* Focus turns to finance minister Rishi Sunak's statement

* FTSE 100 down 0.3%, FTSE 250 off 1.1% (Adds comments; updates prices)

By Shashank Nayar

July 8 (Reuters) - London-listed shares slid for a second straight day on Wednesday as another jump in global cases of the novel coronavirus clouded hopes for an economic rebound in the second half of the year, while FirstGroup tumbled on flagging going concern doubts.

The bus and rail operator fell 15.3% to its lowest in more than three months after it also posted an annual operating loss as passenger volumes plummeted due to the health crisis.

The blue-chip FTSE 100 was off 0.3% and the mid-cap FTSE 250 1.1%, with banks, retailers and travel and leisure stocks being among the biggest decliners.

"Investor sentiment has turned quite cautious as a lot of market players are fearing the long-term implications of the rise in cases. They are purely in a wait-and-see mode," said Patrik Lang, head of equity strategy at Julius Baer.

A raft of global stimulus helped the FTSE 100 rebound about 9% in the second quarter after a coronavirus-driven crash in March, but the export-laden index has struggled to build on those gains in July amid forecasts of a slower-than-expected post-pandemic rebound and simmering U.S.-China tensions.

HSBC fell 3.9% to the bottom of the FTSE 100 after a report said U.S. President Donald Trump's top advisers weighed proposals to undermine the Hong Kong currency's peg to the U.S. dollar. The proposal could possibly limit the ability of Hong Kong banks to buy dollars.

Economic data also paints a mixed picture of a revival in business activity following the easing of a COVID-19 lockdown last month. Figures on Wednesday showed the collapse in Britain's labour market eased only slightly in June.

All eyes later in the day will be on finance minister's Rishi Sunak's statement where he is expected to announce a new scheme to stave off youth unemployment as he attempts to revitalise the economy. (Reporting by Shashank Nayar in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Sagarika Jaisinghani; editing by Uttaresh.V)