Pakistan Army Chief and Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir (3rd R) meets with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi (3rd L) upon arrival in Islamabad on April 25, 2026.
– | Afp | Getty Images
LONDON – European stocks were mixed at the start of the new trading week, as investors looked at developments in Iran-US peace talks and looked ahead to central bank meetings.
It is pan-European The Stoxx 600 It was trading about 0.1% lower at 8:35 a.m. in London (3:35 a.m. ET), reversing earlier positive momentum, with major bourses taking profits as sectors remained mixed.
Oil and gas was the best performing sector, up 0.6% after higher energy prices, followed by retail stocks, which were up 0.5%. In contrast, food and beverage stocks lost 0.5%, as chemicals fell 0.4% amid concerns about ongoing supply chain constraints around the Strait of Hormuz.
Brent crudeThe global oil benchmark, rose more than 2% on Monday, to $107.46 per barrel, as the US West Texas Intermediate rose 1.8% to $96.14.
Iran on Sunday reportedly made a new proposal to the U.S. to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and end the war, and that nuclear talks be postponed to a later date, Axios reported Sunday, citing a U.S. official and two sources familiar with the matter.
This comes after US President Donald Trump on Saturday canceled plans to send US Ambassador Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Islamabad, Pakistan to negotiate with Iran.
“More time spent traveling, more work!” the president wrote on the Truth Social site, adding: “Nobody knows who’s in charge, including them. Also, we have all the cards; they don’t have them! If they want to talk, all they have to do is call!!!”
Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said at the weekend that there are no scheduled meetings between Tehran and Washington.
German wind turbine manufacturer Nordex topped the Stoxx 600, rising more than 10% in morning trading after a strong first-quarter earnings report. The Hamburg-headquartered company reported that sales rose 11% to 1.6 billion euros ($2.2 billion), while revenue came in at 53.6 million euros compared to 7.9 million in the same period in 2025.
Other wind turbine makers made gains on Monday, with Danish mainstays Vestas Wind Systems again Oersted received 3.2% and 2.8%, respectively.
Global market attention will focus on central banks later this week, with the US Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank (ECB) and the Bank of England (BOE) all due to hold key meetings as the war raises inflation and growth expectations.
The Fed’s policy decision on Wednesday may mark Jerome Powell’s last meeting as chairman before Kevin Warsh takes over in May. The Justice Department decided to drop its criminal investigation into Powell on Friday, prompting Sen. Thom Tillis completed Warsh’s confirmation.
The ECB and BOE both published their latest monetary policy decisions on Thursday, and economists expect the central banks to hold on to their interest rates at their respective meetings this month, but will leave the door open for movement later this year.
Investors on Monday will be keeping a close eye on developments in the US after a heavily armed man charged through security at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington, DC on Saturday, before being arrested by US Secret Service agents.
The suspected shooter was identified later Saturday as Cole Allen of Torrance, California. He is being held by authorities as they investigate the shooting.
Earnings are due from Deutsche Börse on Monday and Germany’s GfK consumer confidence data will be published.
– CNBC’s Azhar Sukri, Yun Li and Lee Ying Shan contributed to this market report.
