Western Europe

Rocky Swift gives us a look at what the future holds for European and global markets. As much of Asia was closed for the Lunar New Year holiday, all eyes were on the Middle East in the hope that talks between the U.S. Geopolitical tensions will be de-escalated by talks between the?U.S. Gold and oil prices fell after U.S. president Donald Trump announced that he will be participating "indirectly," in the talks scheduled for Tuesday in Geneva on Iran's nuclear program. He also said he believes Tehran wants to make a deal. Following a holiday in the U.S. for Presidents'...

The Asian financial markets were cautious on Tuesday, with a thinned-out trading session. Oil prices were mixed in anticipation of the nuclear negotiations between the U.S.A. and Iran that are due to start later in the day in Geneva. Tuesday, the markets in China, Hong Kong Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea and South Korea will be closed for Lunar New Year?holidays. U.S. market were closed on Monday due to 'Presidents' Day'. The Nikkei in Japan was down by 0.9%, while the S&P/ASX200 in Australia was up by 0.24%. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell by 2.5 basis points, to 4.029%,...

In Asian trade, Brent oil prices fell on Tuesday after investors?assessed the risks of a supply disruption following Iran's naval drills near Strait?of Hormuz just before?nuclear talks with the U.S.?later?in?the day. Brent crude futures fell 0.47% or 32 cents to $68.33 per barrel at 0430 GMT after a 1.33% rise on Monday. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude was $63.51 a barrel, up 62c or 0.99%. However, the price increase included the entire Monday's movement as the contract didn't settle that day because of the U.S. Presidents Day Holiday. There are many markets closed for Lunar New Year on Tuesday, including...

The Asian financial markets treaded carefully in Tuesday's holiday-thinned trade, but oil prices rose as U.S.?and Iran nuclear negotiations in Geneva were due to start later that day. The markets in Mainland China, Hong Kong and Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea, and Taiwan were closed Tuesday to celebrate Lunar New Year. Monday,?U.S. markets were closed for Presidents' Day. The Nikkei fell 0.5% and the Topix, which is a broader index, dropped 0.2%. The S&P/ASX200 index in Australia was almost 0.5% higher. The 10-year Treasury yields fell 1 basis point on Tuesday to 4,044%, the lowest since December. Japan's 5-year yield dropped...

The world's shares were stable on Monday, after Friday's decline - triggered by AI concerns - as the Lunar New Year holidays in Asia and Presidents Day made for thin trading. China, South Korea and Taiwan were all closed markets, but MSCI's broadest world share index, along with currencies and bonds, steadied. Stock futures continue to be traded, but the U.S. bond and stock markets remain closed. The European share market ended the day with gains after a recovery in the banking sector. This sector was impacted last week by AI-related concerns that spread to the financials. The STOXX 600...

The world's shares were stable on Monday, after Friday's decline - triggered by AI concerns - as the Lunar New Year holidays in Asia and Presidents Day made for thin trading. China, South Korea and Taiwan were all closed markets. MSCI's broadest world share index rose by 0.1% as currencies and bonds stabilized. Stock futures continue to be traded, but the U.S. bond and stock markets will not open. The European stock market rose on the back of a recovery in the banking sector. This sector was severely hit by AI-related concerns last week, when they spread to the financials....

Wayne Cole gives us a look at what the markets will be like in Europe and around the world today. The week has started off quiet in the United States and Asia. The Nikkei was stung by Japanese data as the GDP missed expectations. The economy only grew 0.2% annually in the fourth quarter of 2012, while analysts expected a rebound to 1.6% following a contraction in Q3. The GDP also increased by just 0.1% on a year-on-year basis, which is a dramatic drop from the 2% growth rate of mid-2025. The nominal GDP was slightly better, at 3.4% for...

The Asian share market quietly consolidated recent gains on Monday, as the Lunar?Year holiday led to thin trading. Meanwhile, dismal economic reports from Japan drained some of the air from that booming stock market. China, South Korea and?Taiwan are among the markets closed. This leaves?currencies, bonds, and precious metals becalmed. Japan's economy only grew by a meager 0.2% annually in the quarter ending December, far less than the 1.6% forecast. Government spending was a drag on the activity. The figures are disappointing and highlight the difficult task that Prime Minister Takaichi faces. They should encourage her to push for more...

Robert Harvey and Pietro Lombardi MADRID/LONDON - Spanish energy giant Repsol has appointed Juan Romero to its global head of trading. A spokesman told? On Friday. The company announced that Juan Romero would replace Jose Antonio Correa who retired. This news was not previously announced. Repsol is expanding its trading division, as part of its strategy to transition from a traditional oil and gas company into a multi-energy provider. This shift comes at the same time as it considers a reverse merger for its upstream portfolio. Romero, who has a LinkedIn profile, worked for Repsol in Madrid and Houston, where...

By Anna Szymanski February 13th - What Mike Dolan, the ROI team and I are looking forward to reading, watching and listening to this weekend. Editor's Note Hello Morning Bid readers! This week has been a rollercoaster ride. We saw a massive election victory in Japan, the extension of artificial intelligence disruption, a pushback against President Donald Trump’s tariff agenda, and a mixture of U.S. data that roiled rates markets. All of this suggests that market expectations on everything from technology to "Takaichi" are as clear as mud. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 2% on Thursday after Cisco Systems' disappointing earnings....

After a week-long selling spree, global shares fell from their record highs ahead of important U.S. Inflation data. Meanwhile, concerns about shrinking margins and AI disruption remained under the surface. Early trading saw the?MSCI index drop 0.2% while Europe's STOXX was flat. U.S. Futures were flat as well, after steep losses on Friday that saw the Nasdaq Composite, which is heavily weighted towards technology, post its largest daily decline in three weeks. It fell 2%. The selling continued in Asia where Nikkei, the Japanese stock market index, fell by 1.2%. Transportation companies in the United States were the latest to...

Stella Qiu gives us a look at what the future holds for European and global markets. The tech selloff is back with a vengeance. Cisco was the cause of this latest slump, as its margins were squeezed due to the rising?costs for memory chips. This frightened investors who had been expecting booming profits. AI is causing a lot of concern about the future of jobs. Overnight, trucking and logistics companies suffered a sharp drop in stock prices. This was not long after the software sector plummeted as Anthropic released Claude Cowork to fuel job concerns. Apple was not spared. Apple,...

The Dutch state-owned financial institution Invest International will lend a total of $60 million to the chipmaker 'Nexperia, in order to finance a series of global investments at 'its production sites. The funds will be used to boost production, modernise the production lines and improve productivity. Nexperia in the Netherlands, a unit of China's Wingtech, was caught up in a corporate standoff with Europe after a Dutch state intervention installed an European management team last year. According to the Dutch newspaper FD, this move scared away investors and caused a global crisis in terms of chip supplies for the automotive...

Prices of copper fell on Monday, due to the?firmer dollar as well as a focus on increasing inventories and weak demand prospects during holiday trading. The London Metal Exchange's Wednesday settlement or rollover for maturing contracts and the Chinese Lunar New Year holiday this week, as well as the U.S. public holiday on Monday, will likely result in low volumes and volatile movements due to the expiring contracts and the holiday. As of 1700 GMT, the benchmark copper price on the LME was 0.2% lower. It stood at $12.845 per metric ton. It has fallen more than 11% from a...

Analysts praised a core profit that was above expectations and predicted a positive reaction to the shares. Rio de Janeiro-headquartered Vale, one of the world's largest iron ore producers, posted a $3.8 billion net loss for the October-to-December quarter, compared to a $694 million loss in the same period of 2024. Analysts polled at?LSEG expected a profit of $2.7 billion. Vale Base Metals reported a $3.5billion impairment of its?nickel assets located in Canada. This was "caused by a downward adjustment in long-term nickel prices based on market estimates". The company also noted a $2.8 billion write-off from deferred taxes assets...

Data from Benchmark Mineral - Intelligence (BMI), a consultancy, showed that global EV registrations dropped 3% in January due to the introduction of a EV purchase 'tax' and lower EV subsides in China as well as policy alterations in the U.S. Why it's important Global automakers with a large exposure to the U.S. have written down $55 billion over the last year. This is due to their scaling back of electric vehicle ambitions as they face a difficult U.S. marketplace under President Donald Trump. They also faced price wars and more complex vehicle types in Europe. The European Union, as...

Aluminum prices reached a two-week high after Australia's South32 confirmed that it would close a smelter located in Mozambique. However, all metals fell later as investor sentiment soured and financial markets tumbled. Benchmark three-month aluminum on the London Metal Exchange reached its highest since January 30, at $3,163.50 per metric ton. South32 confirmed it would place its Mozambique Aluminium plant on care and maintainance next month due to a power shortage. Aluminum, however, as well as other metals,?moved in the red during European afternoon trading, along with financial markets and was down 0.1% at $3.100 by 1730 GMT. U.S. indexes...

Outokumpu, a Finnish stainless steel'maker, warned on Thursday that despite a core profit of over $500,000 for the fourth quarter 2025 which was above market expectations. At 1319 GMT, the shares were down about 5%. Last year, European Steelmakers were under pressure from a weak domestic market, high energy costs and cheap Asian imports. They welcomed EU protections such as the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism or the European Commission’s proposal to reduce import quotas. Marc-Simon Schaar, the finance chief at CBAM, told reporters that despite the fact that he expected a'significant recovery in volumes' and saw more activity on the...

Thyssenkrupp CEO says that planned EU measures to protect the bloc's battered?steel industry?have improved investor sentiment, and have strengthened Thyssenkrupp’s position in negotiations to sell its steel business to India's Jindal Steel International. Jindal Steel International has made a nonbinding offer for Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe, Europe's number one steelmaker. In September, Jindal Steel International made a non-binding bid for Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe (TKSE), Europe's No. Thyssenkrupp's CEO Miguel Lopez is focusing his strategy on turning the group into a holding by finding a solution for TKSE. This company has ties to Germany's history of industrial production. Lopez said that the...

Nickel rose on Wednesday for the fourth consecutive session after the?world's largest nickel mine, located in Indonesia? received a?dramatically reduced production quota this year. As of 1705 GMT, the benchmark three-month Nickel?on London Metal Exchange?was up by 2.7% to $17.955 per metric ton. The nickel used in the production of stainless steel and rechargeable battery earlier rose as high as 3%, to $18,020. This was its highest price since January 30. French miner Eramet announced on Wednesday that its PT Weda Bay Nickel joint venture with China's?Tsingshan and Indonesia's PT Antam received an initial production allowance for 2026 of 12...

Platinum's record-high price will have to continue for miners to invest heavily in new projects. Executives are prioritising shareholder payouts at the moment, despite concerns about past mistakes and rising costs. After years of margin stress that forced deep cost cuts and massive layoffs, a rebound in the?platinum? prices -- spot platinum reaching a record 2,918.80 an ounce in January after surging by 127% in 2025 - has improved the fortunes of miners. Valterra Platinum, which is the largest platinum producer in the world by sales value and was spun-off from Anglo American last January, is expecting its annual profit...

Kraft Heinz halted its plans to split on Wednesday, joining a select group of companies that have retracted major corporate restructurings. It announced plans to split in two, one focusing on sauces and condiments and the other on groceries. Some major companies have cancelled plans to split. DUPONT DuPont, a manufacturer of industrial materials, announced in January 2025 that it would no longer'separate their water business and turn it into a publicly-traded company. Instead, they will'spin off its electronics business. VIRGIN O2 Marc Murtra, the CEO of Telefonica, announced that in July 2025 they had scrapped their plan to spin...

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, said that the EU must simplify its regulations to be more competitive with the United States and China. Over the last two decades, EU growth has consistently been lower than that of?the United States, with EU innovation and productivity, especially in fields such as AI, falling behind. "Let's take the U.S. as an example again." Von der Leyen stated on Wednesday that there is only one financial system and capital. "In Europe, we don't only have 27 different systems of financial supervision, each with their own supervisor. More than 300 trading...

Mark Learmonth, CEO of Caledonia Mining, said on Wednesday that the successful international capital raise?for its flagship Bilboes Gold Mine highlighted Zimbabwe's renewed potential as an investment destination. Caledonia raised $150 million in a convertible bond last month to fund the Bilboes Project, which will, when operational, be the largest mine of gold in Zimbabwe. It already operates Zimbabwe's 80,000-ounce-per-year Blanket mine. Learmonth said on the sidelines a mining conference held in Cape Town, "It is not only a game?changer" for Zimbabwe. "With a project that large and of such high quality, it is not possible to continue believing that...