BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - European stocks closed on a positive note on Tuesday amid hopes the United States and Iran will try and resolve their conflict during a fresh round of negotiations likely to take place later in the week.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday that the U.S. has been called by the other side and he is still willing to engage with Tehran, helping ease concerns about further disruptions to energy supplies.
'I can tell you we've been called by the other side. They'd like to make a deal very badly,' Trump told reporters on Monday - adding to speculation the two sides are exploring a second round of face-to-face negotiations to secure a lasting ceasefire.
Discussions between Washington and Tehran are ongoing and another round of negotiations remains possible, with Turkey reportedly working to bridge differences between both sides, according to CNN.
Oil prices tumbled, easing concerns about inflation a bit. Auto and aviation stocks climbed higher. Shares from financial, technology, consumer and realty sectors too had a good session.
The pan European Stoxx 600 climbed 0.99%. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 gained 0.25%, while Germany's DAX and France's CAC 40 closed higher by 1.27% and 1.12%, respectively. Switzerland's SMI ended 0.94% up.
Among other markets in Europe, Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Poland, Spain, Sweden and Türkiye closed with strong gains.
Netherlands and Russia ended moderately higher, and Finland settled modestly up. Norway ended weak, while Portugal closed flat.
In the UK market, Intertek Group zoomed nearly 13% after launching a strategic review that could see it split its business, while maintaining its annual outlook. The company posted a revenue of GBP 838.5 million in the three month ended March 2026, higher than GBP 808.9 million in the same period last year.
Metlen Energy & Metals, Fresnillo, Convatec Group, Rentokil Initial, Rolls-Royce Holdings, Intercontinental Hotels Group, Halma, IAG and Burberry Group gained 3%-5%.
Imperial Brands ended nearly 5% down. The British tobacco company has warned of increased losses from its NGPs due to increased investment in building both scale and market share.
Tesco, British American Tobacco, Shell, BP, Airtel Africa, Berkeley Group Holdings, Bunzl and Unilever closed down by 1%-3%.
In the German market, Deutsche Bank, Siemens, Infineon, MTU Aero Engines, Merck, Volkswagen, Siemens Energy, Commerzbank, Symrise, Porsche Automobil Holding, Continental and Heidelberg Materials gained 2%-4%.
BASF, BMW, Brenntag, Daimler Truck Holding, Deutsche Telekom and Rheinmetall lost 1%-2%.
In the French market, Eurofins Scientific surged more than 5.5%. The testing and laboratory services provider has signed an agreement to sell its electrical and electronic testing unit to UL Solutions.
Teleperformance rallied 5.8%. EssilorLuxottica gained nearly 4%, while Stellantis moved up 3.2%.
Saint Gobain, Kering, Schneider Electric, Societe Generale, STMicroelectronics, Bureau Veritas, Accor, Veolia Environment, Safran, ArcelorMittal, Capgemini, Pernod Ricard, Sanofi and Unibail Rodamco gained 2%-3%.
Shares of advertising and public relations company Publicis Groupe gained about 2%. The company has reported a 6.4% increase in revenue to Euro 4.1 billion, in the first quarter of 2026. Net revenue growth increased 4.5% in the quarter, a slight drop compared to last year's 4.9%. The company expects net revenue growth in the range of 4-5% for the year.
TotalEnergies ended nearly 3% down, as oil prices fell sharply.
In economic news, Germany's wholesale prices surged 4.1% year-on-year in March 2026, accelerating from a 1.2% growth in the prior three months and marking the 16th consecutive increase. It was also the fastest rise since February 2023
On a monthly basis, wholesale prices increased 2.7%, picking up from 0.6% in February and topping market estimates of a 0.4% rise.
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