BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - Despite a spell in positive territory early on in the session, European stocks closed weak on Tuesday as investors weighed the prospects of fresh talks between the U.S. and Iran ahead of the expiry deadline for the two-week ceasefire between the two nations.
According to reports, Pakistan is pressing ahead with the groundwork for a second round of talks between Iran and the United States in Islamabad as a fragile ceasefire hung in the balance, even though it remained unclear whether Tehran would send a delegation.
The two-week ceasefire agreed between the U.S. and Iran was set to expire at 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday, although U.S. President Donald Trump told Bloomberg on Monday that the truce would end 'Wednesday evening Washington time.'
The pan European Stoxx 600 ended down 0.87%. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 settled 1.05% down, while Germany's DAX and France's CAC 40 closed lower by 0.6% and 1.14%, respectively. Switzerland's SMI ended 1.13% down.
Among other markets in Europe, Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Türkiye closed weak.
Iceland, Norway and Russia ended higher, while Greece closed flat.
In the UK market, Rolls-Royce Holdings ended down 6.5%. Melrose Industries, BAE Systems, Endeavour Mining, Coca-Cola HBC, Reckitt Benckiser, Smith & Nephew, Vodafone Group, British American Tobacco, AstraZeneca, Marks & Spencer, Imperial Brankds, IAG and Anglo American Plc lost 2%-4.3%.
Associated British Foods shares declined sharply after first half adjusted profit fell 18%.
Compass Group, Relx, SSE, LSEG, Experian, The Sage Group, Standard Life, Polar Capital Technology Trust, Burberry Group, Centrica, Pearson, BP and Land Securities gained 1%-3%.
In the German market, MTU Aero Engines ended nearly 6% down. Beiersdorf shed more than 3% after reporting lower group sales in the first quarter of 2026, reflecting declines across all regions.
Bayer, Airbus, Deutsche Telekom and Rheinmetall lost 2.5%-3.4%.
Henkel, Mercedes-Benz, Commerzbank, Vonovia, Heidelberg Materials, Gea Group, Continental, Fresenius and Siemens Energy lost 1%-2%.
Scout24, RWE, Allianz, BASF, Brenntag and SAP ended notably higher.
In the French market, Safran fell nearly 7%. Thales ended lower by about 6%. Airbus drifted lower by 3.3%.
Vinci, Accor, Danone, Kering, L'Oreal, Bureau Veritas, Societe Generale, Sanofi, Hermes International and ArcelorMittal lost 1%-2.3%.
Teleperformance climbed 2.5%. Edenred and STMicroelectronics also closed notably higher.
In economic news, data from the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) said the ZEW Economic Sentiment Index in Germany decreased to -17.20 points in April from -0.50 points in March.
ZEW Current Conditions in Germany decreased to -73.70 points in April from -62.90 points in March.
A report from the Centre for European Economic Research said the ZEW Indicator of Economic Sentiment for the Euro Area dropped sharply by 11.9 points to -20.4 in April, its lowest level since December 2022 and well below expectations of -3.6.
The assessment of the current situation also weakened, with the index falling 13.1 points to -43, while inflation expectations remained broadly unchanged at 79.
The UK unemployment rate dropped and wage growth eased in the three months to February, data from the Office for National Statistics showed.
The jobless rate stood at 4.9% in the December to February period, down from 5.2% in the previous three-month period. The rate was expected to remain stable at 5.2%.
The employment rate dropped marginally to 75% from 75.1% in the November to January period.
Data showed that the annual growth in employees' average earnings, excluding bonuses, eased to 3.8% from 4.1%. Including bonuses, the yearly growth also softened to 3.6% from 3.8%.
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