LONDON – European shares fell on Tuesday as investors awaited Washington’s response to Iranian peace proposals and reacted to earnings reports from several regional companies.
It is pan-European The Stoxx 600 it was 0.1% lower shortly after trading began, as oil prices rose sharply in early trade.
The UK’s FTSE 100 index was down 0.1% at 8:10 a.m. in London (3:10 a.m. ET), and Germany The DAX slipping 0.2%, in France CAC40 data down 0.3%. of Italy FTSE MIB increased by 0.5%, however.
The benefits are coming Novartis, Airbus, BP again Barclays on tuesday.
Shares in Barclays fell 2.7% after the UK lender revealed it had taken a £200 million ($270 million) private debt-related charge over exposure to failed asset lender Market Financial Solutions.
The UK lender on Tuesday reported a pre-tax profit of £2.81 billion for the first quarter, up 3% from £2.72 billion a year earlier. Its CET1 ratio was 14.1%. It also announced a £500 million share buyback to follow an ongoing £1 billion plan once completed. In total, Barclays aims to return more than £15 billion to shareholders between 2026 and 2028.
Investors will be checking news that US President Donald Trump and his national security team have discussed Iran’s proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz if the US lifts its blockade and the war ends, White House Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt confirmed on Monday.
The proposal would delay talks on Tehran’s nuclear ambitions for the next day, Axios and the Associated Press reported earlier in the session.
It is not clear whether Trump, who has vowed not to lift the embargo until the deal with Iran is “100% done,” has welcomed the reported proposal to end the two-month-old war. Oil prices rose overnight as uncertainty continued over the outcome of the war.
In business news, German biotechnology giant Bayer went before the US Supreme Court on Monday in a bid to end thousands of lawsuits against its herbicide Roundup.
Bayer acquired Roundup maker Monsanto for $63 billion in 2018 and has faced years of litigation since the deal was closed, amid allegations that glyphosate, a herbicide, has caused health problems, including cancer.
Jurors were reportedly divided after hearing arguments in Monday’s hearing, where Bayer filed a motion to challenge a Missouri court’s decision to award $1.25 million to a man who said years of exposure to Roundup caused his non-Hodgkin lymphoma diagnosis.
Activists from the organization “Make America Healthy Again,” or MAHA, gathered outside the courthouse Monday to protest Bayer.
A Swiss drug maker Novartis reported its first-quarter earnings on Tuesday, and the group’s operating income fell 12% year over year to $4.9 billion.
It fell short of the $5.3 billion expected by analysts polled by LSEG.
British oil major BP also reported first quarter earnings on Tuesday, the company’s quarterly profit more than doubled and exceeded expectations.
Global market attention will again focus on major banks this week, with the US Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank and the Bank of England 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 the 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 meetings this month. However, the big banks are expected to leave their doors open for walk-ins later this year.
— CNBC’s Kevin Breuninger contributed to this market report.
