BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - European stocks closed on a bright note on Tuesday, coming back fairly strongly after recent losses, as a sharp drop in oil prices and U.S. President Donald Trump's comments that the war in the Middle East could end soon, helped lift investor sentiment.
Meanwhile, Iran's Revolutionary Guards issued a stern warning, saying they would not allow 'one liter of oil' to be shipped from the Middle East if military strikes by the U.S. and Israel continue.
Markets across the globe fell on Monday as inflation concerns rose following a steep rise in oil prices. Today, brent crude futures tumbled to $89.00, losing about 10%. Oil futures had soared to $119.50 a barrel on Monday.
Stocks from mining, financials, real estate and auto sectors that had taken a beating in recent sessions, bounced back into the reckoning and closed on a firm note.
The pan European Stoxx 600 climbed 1.88%. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 gained 1.59%, Germany's DAX ended stronger by 2.39% and France's CAC 40 closed 1.79% up. Switzerland's SMI settled 0.5% up.
Among other markets in Europe, Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Finland, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Türkiye closed with strong gains.
Denmark moved modesty higher, while Norway and Russia ended weak.
In the UK market, miners Fresnillo, Anglo American Plc., and Antofagasta gained 8.1%, 6.6% and 6%, respectively. Endeavour Mining rallied 3.3%, while Glencore and Rio Tinto ended up by 3.12% and 3%, respectively.
Barclays, Standard Chartered, Natwest Group and HSBC Holdings moved up sharply. Aviation stocks IAG and Easyjet posted strong gains.
Persimmon climbed more than 4.5% after reporting higher sales and profits for the full year.
Rolls-Royce Holdings, Pershing Square Holdings, Segro, Spirax Group, Legal & General, Prudential, Centica, JD Sports Fashion, Weir Group, Halma, St. James's Place, Games Workshop, Polar Capital Technology Trust, ICG, British American Tobacco and Intercontinental Hotels Group gained 2.5%.
Energy stocks BP and Shell ended lower by 2% and 0.8%, weighed down by weak oil prices.
Smith & Nephew, LSEG, Compass Group and Relx closed with sharp to moderate losses.
In the German market, Infineon climbed more than 6%. Bayer moved up by about 5.7% and Continental gained 5.4%. Volkswagen rallied 3% after saying it targets a margin of 8-10% in 2030.
Siemens Energy, Siemens, Daimler Truck Holding, E.ON, Commerzbank, Deutsche Bank, MTU Aero Engines, Deutsche Post, Merck, Zalando, Volkswagen, Heidelberg Materials, Porsche Automobil Holding, Vonovia, BASF, Fresenius, BMW, RWE, Brenntag, Mercedes-Benz and Munich RE gained 1.5%-5%.
Fashion group Hugo Boss gained than 5% after reporting a 2025 annual operating profit that surpassed expectations.
Wind turbine manufacturer Nordex Group rose sharply on receiving orders from Wpd totaling nearly 280 MW.
Scout24, SAP, Siemens Healthineers, Fresenius Medical Care and Beiersdorf closed weak.
In the French market, STMicroelectronics, ArcelorMittal, Societe Generale, Schneider Electric, Kering, Legrand, BNP Paribas, Engie, Unibail Rodamco and Credit Agricle gained 3%-9%.
Michelin, Accor, Hermes International, Vinci, Veolia Environment, EssilorLuxottica, Safran, AXA, Bouygues, Stellantis, LVMH, Thales and Air Liquide also moved up sharply.
Teleperformance, Publicis Groupe and Capgemini ended notably lower.
On the economic front, data from the federal statistical office Destatis showed Germany's trade surplus widened to €21.2 billion in January 2026 from €15.9 billion in the same month a year earlier, surpassing market expectations of €15.2 billion and marking the largest surplus since August 2024. Exports fell 2.3% month-on-month to €130.5 billion, while imports dropped more sharply, falling 5.9% month-on-month to a seventeen-month low of €109.2 billion.
France's trade deficit narrowed sharply to EUR 1.84 billion in January from EUR 4.29 billion in December largely due to a notable fall in imports, data from the customs office revealed. In the same period last year, the deficit totaled EUR 6.75 billion. Exports posted a monthly growth of 0.7% in January. At the same time, imports declined 3.6% from December.
Data from British Retail Consortium showed UK retail sales rose 0.7% year-on-year on a like-for-like basis in February 2026, falling short of market expectations for a 2.4%. Retail sales rose 2.3% in January.
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