BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - The major European markets closed mixed on Tuesday after a cautious session amid concerns about U.S.-Iran tensions and lingering uncertainty about the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.
Investors assessed recent earnings updates and looked ahead to the crucial U.S. inflation data due later in the week for clues about the Federal Reserve's interest trajectory.
Brent crude futures climbed above $90 a barrel amid fading hopes for a deal between Washington and Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway for global energy supplies. The price dropped to around $88.70 subsequently but still remained more than 1% up from previous close.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he has instructed American representatives to firmly include compensation demands from Iran in any future negotiations, complicating efforts to reopen the crucial waterway.
The pan European Stoxx 600 crept up 0.01%. The UK's FTSE 100 ended down 0.17% and France's CAC 40 closed lower by 0.13%, while Germany's DAX climbed 0.26%. Switzerland's SMI ended 0.4% down.
Among other markets in Europe, Austria, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia and Spain ended higher.
Belgium, Czech Republic, Ireland, Sweden and Türkiye closed weak, while Iceland ended flat.
In the UK market, St. James's Place, Compass Group, Endeavour Mining, Entain, IG Group Holdings, BP, Shell, Persimmon and AutoTrader Group gained 1.5%-3.2%.
Games Workshop, Scottish Mortgage, Informa, Vodafone Group, Barratt Redrow, Lion Finance, ICG, Glencore, Kingfisher and National Grid also ended notably higher.
Spirax Group shed 5.6%. The thermal energy and fluid technology firm reiterated its guidance for mid-single-digit organic revenue growth and margin expansion for the full year after posting improved first-half results.
International Workplace Group shares ended down by 1.4% on weak results. The British office-space provider reported a loss before tax of $20 million, compared with a profit before tax of $12 million in the prior year.
M&G, Standard Life, Legal & General, Prudential, Coca-Cola HBC, 3i Group, JD Sports Fashion and Admiral Group lost 2%-3.4%. Sainsbury (J), GSK, Tesco, Hiscox, Diageo, Aviva and Imperial Brands were among the other notable losers.
In the German market, Siemens Energy climbed 2.5%. RWE, Deutsche Telekom, Scout24, BMW, Siemens, Continental, Gea Group and Siemens Healthineers moved up 1%-2%.
Qiagen, Adidas, Zalando, Merck, Daimler Truck Holding, Fresenius Medical Care and Brenntag closed notably lower.
In the French market, Teleperformance jumped nearly 4%. TotalEnergies, Capgemini, Legrand and Schneider Electric gained 1.1%-1.4%.
STMicroelectronics dropped by about 3.2%. Stellantis closed 2.6% down. Bouygues, L'Oreal, Pernod Ricard, Danone and Airbus shed 1%-2%. BNP Paribas, Edenred and LVMH also closed weak.
In economic news, data released by British Retail Consortium showed UK retail sales rose by 1% year-on-year on a like-for-like basis in July, falling short of market expectations for a 1.5% gain and slowing from a 1.7% increase in the previous month. The latest figure also marked the softest growth since February.
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