European shares eased on Tuesday as firmer oil prices fuelled inflation worries and concerns that a Middle East war could disrupt supplies, while Swiss pharmaceuticals giant Novartis plunged after reporting a second drug development setback.
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis attacked energy facilities in Saudi Arabia, in a major expansion of the ongoing conflict, sending Brent crude to near $99 (€85.24) a barrel earlier in the day.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed down 0.05 per cent at 649.60.
Dublin
The Iseq All-Share index rose 1.1 per cent to 14,536.90, with nutrition-related companies standing out as strong spots. Kerry Group was in demand, rising 2.4 per cent to €88.70. Glanbia gained 2 per cent to €22.
Irish Continental Group (ICG) inched 0.5 per cent higher to €7.42 as investors eyed an all-important extraordinary general meeting (EGM) on Thursday on a management buyout bid. Still, the stock continues to trade below the €8-a-share offer on the table from management.
Healthcare services group Uniphar lost 1.2 per cent to close at €4.13 as a solid set of interim results, in line with what was flagged in a trading statement in July, provided little to excite investors.
Davy analysts, who have upgraded their full-year earnings forecasts for the company five times since the start of last year, said they were leaving their forecasts unchanged for now.
London
London’s benchmark FTSE 100 ended the session 0.1 per cent lower, with gains in commodity-linked shares helping offset broader market weakness, as a week packed with economic data worldwide got under way.
Energy stocks in London rose, with BP and Shell up 0.68 per cent and 0.52 per cent, respectively.
Miners Antofagasta and Glencore gained 4.7 per cent and 4.2 per cent as copper prices hit a record high.
Pharma stocks were the biggest drags, with medical products maker Smith+Nephew down 3.6 per cent and index heavyweight AstraZeneca sliding 1.4 per cent as the Novartis setback weighed on sentiment.
Dunelm tumbled 14.3 per cent after the homeware retailer issued a profit warning for 2027, citing hot summer weather.
Europe
Novartis plunged 10.9 per cent after it said late-stage testing of a drug for myotonic dystrophy failed to meet its primary endpoint. The disappointment follows another closely watched setback announced on Monday, when its experimental cholesterol drug pelacarsen failed in a late-stage trial.
However, Swiss generic drugs company Sandoz added 4.5 per cent saying it aims to more than double net sales from 2025 to 2035.
Poste Italiane sweetened its takeover offer for Telecom Italia as the state-controlled company seeks to secure control of Italy’s former phone monopoly. Shares of Poste edged 0.5 per cent higher, while Telecom Italia jumped 2.9 per cent.
Investors widely expect the European Central Bank to raise interest rates by 25 basis points on Thursday, while attention is also turning to US inflation data due later this week. The inflation report follows a stronger-than-expected US jobs reading that reinforced bets on another Federal Reserve rate hike this month.
Among other movers, Kion Group rose 6.8 per cent after Citigroup upgraded the German forklift maker to a buy, citing a potential turning point in the industrial-truck cycle.
New York
The major US stock indexes were lower in early afternoon trading as fresh hostilities in the Middle East pushed oil prices higher, while markets await inflation data due later this week.
The declines follow a roller-coaster stretch that saw investors rushing to readjust rate-hike expectations after commentary from Federal Reserve governor Christopher Waller and a stronger-than-expected jobs report.
Nvidia and Microsoft were lower, as was Apple, a day before an event at which the iPhone market is expected to unveil its latest products under new chief executive John Ternus.
Chipmakers rose, helped by optimism around artificial intelligence (AI). Qualcomm was further helped as it struck a deal with Amazon to develop custom AI chips. – Additional reporting, Reuters