London city skyline at dusk.
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LONDON — European markets edged lower on Tuesday as traders watched developments in the Middle East and Ukraine amid renewed volatility in the oil market.
pan-european Stocks 600 Shares were down 0.2% shortly after 8:30 a.m. ET in London.
Regional sectors were mixed in morning trading. In London, the FTSE 100 index rose 0.6%, led by mining stocks, but the major stock exchanges in Paris, Frankfurt and Milan all fell.
The pullback followed strong gains across Europe’s major stock exchanges on Monday, with the DAX closing 2.01% higher, the CAC 40 1.76% higher and the FTSE MIB 1.43% higher. London markets were closed on Monday due to Britain’s late spring bank holiday.
The Stoxx 600 closed 1.04% higher on Monday, reversing losses suffered since the Middle East conflict began on February 28 and closing at its highest level in more than 10 months.
The U.S. military carried out an attack in southern Iran early Tuesday that the Central Command described as “self-defense.” Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is in India, said the Strait of Hormuz would eventually have to be opened “in some way.”
The apparent escalation in hostilities came despite President Donald Trump previously suggesting in a post on TruthSocial that negotiations were “progressing well” and a peace deal could be on the horizon.
The situation was mixed, meaning the oil market was in flux in early trading decisions. international benchmark brent crude oil rose 3.1% to $99.14. In contrast, in the United States, markets are scheduled to reopen after the Memorial Day holiday on Monday. west texas intermediate Futures were last seen down 4.2% at $92.48.
Investors are closely monitoring developments in the ongoing war in Ukraine after Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov instructed Marco Rubio to evacuate diplomats and citizens from Kiev ahead of a new “coordinated attack” on the Ukrainian capital. This comes after a series of targeted attacks over the weekend.
In corporate news, ferrari Shares fell more than 6% after the luxury carmaker unveiled its first fully electric car, the Ferrari Luce, on Tuesday.
KingfisherThe company, which owns British home improvement retailers B&Q and Screwfix, rose to the top of the Stoxx 600 after reporting first-quarter earnings to investors. The company, which also owns France’s Brico Depot and Castrama, said it was confident of meeting its full-year guidance despite a 0.7% decline in underlying sales. Kingfisher stock rose about 4.6% in morning trading.
No major economic data is expected to be released on Tuesday.
