Major European Markets Close On Firm Note Despite War Concerns

(RTTNews) - Despite weak Eurozone economic sentiment data and the ongoing war in the Middle East, European stocks gained some significant ground in positive territory on Monday. The upmove was supported by some bargain hunting at several counters following recent declines.

As the joint U.S.-Israeli war on Iran stretched into its second month, French central bank chief Francois Villeroy de Galhau said the European Central Bank is ready to act, but it is too early to discuss the timing of any rate hike.

Oil prices climbed up sharply amid concerns about supply disruptions from the Middle East due to the continued aggression by the warring nations. Brent crude futures climbed to nearly $109.50 a barrel, before easing to around $107.60, but still remained nearly 2.3% up from previous close.

U.S. President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social this morning that the U.S. has made "great progress" in discussions with a "new, and more reasonable, regime" to end military operations in Iran.

However, the President warned that if a deal not reached shortly, the U.S. will "conclude our lovely 'stay' in Iran by blowing up and completely obliterating all of their Electric Generating Plants, Oil Wells and Kharg Island."

The pan European Stoxx 600 climbed 0.94%. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 jumped 1.61%, Germany's DAX closed up by 1.18% and France's CAC 40 ended with a gain of 0.92%. Switzerland's SMI gained 0.78%.

Among other markets in Europe, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Spain and Sweden ended higher.

Czech Republic, Greece, Iceland, Ireland and Türkiye closed weak.

In the UK market, Burberry Group, LSEG, Centrica, British Land, Land Securities, SSE, Experian, Relx, BAE Systems, Severn Trent, Admiral Group and BP gained 3%-4.5%.

Rio Tinto gained about 3.5%. The mining giant said operations at three of its four Pilbara iron ore port terminals have resumed after Tropical Cyclone Narelle passed over Western Australia's Pilbara region.

National Grid, Glencore, AstraZeneca, United Utilities, Haleon, Pearson and AutoTrader Group were among the several other notable gainers.

Antofagasta drifted down 3.2%. IAG, Airtel Africa, Lion Finance Group, Reckitt Benckiser and Smiths Group lost 1%-2%.

In the German market, RWE, Scout24, Hannover RE, Vonovia, Deutsche Boerse, Rheinmetall, SAP, Munich RE, Symrise, E.ON, Merck, Beirsdorf, Bayer, Brenntag and Fresenius gained 2%-3.5%.

Allianz, Deutsche Telekom, Qiagen, BASF, Gea Group, Deutsche Post and Adidas also posted strong gains.

Siemens Energy and Commerzbank shed about 2.7% and 1.2%, respectively. Continental also ended notably lower.

In the French market, Engie, Teleperformance, TotalEnergies, Thales, Kering, Edenred and Danone gained 3%-4%.

Stellantis, Unibail Rodamco, AXA, Pernod Ricard, LVMH, Dassault Systemes, Air Liquide, Publicis Group, Carrefour, Veolia Environment, Capgemini, BureauVeritas, Orange and EssilorLuxottica also closed notably higher.

STMicroelectronics, Societe Generale, Schneider Electric, Accor, Safran, ArcelorMittal and Airbus ended weak.

In economic news, Germany's inflation accelerated in March as energy prices increased for the first time since late 2023 due to the Iran war, preliminary data from Destatis showed.

The consumer price index rose 2.7% year-on-year in March, faster than February's 1.9% gain. The rate came in line with expectations.

A report from the European Commission showed the Eurozone Economic Sentiment Indicator dropped to 96.6 in March, down from a revised 98.2 in February and missing market forecasts of 96.8.

Euro Area consumer confidence was confirmed at -16.3 in March, the lowest since October 2023, down from -12.3 in the prior month.

In economic news, net mortgage approvals for house purchases in the UK, which is an indicator of future borrowing, increased to 62,600 in February from 60,200 in January, above market expectations of 61,300.