28th Jul 2026 12:07
(Alliance News) - Stocks in Europe moved higher on Tuesday, as corporate earnings rolled in, while equities in New York are called to open mixed as the dust settles on a chip sector sell-off that saw Nvidia once again relinquish its crown as the world's most valuable company.
The FTSE 100 index rose 54.89 points, 0.5%, at 10,836.64 on Tuesday. The FTSE 250 added 23.94 points, 0.1%, at 23,922.04, and the AIM all-share fell 3.22 points, 0.4%, at 768.47.
The Cboe UK 100 rose 0.2% at 1,076.49, the Cboe UK 250 added 0.1% at 20,860.89, and the Cboe small companies was 0.2% higher at 18,632.41.
In Frankfurt, the DAX 40 added 0.4%. The CAC 40 was 0.3% higher.
Sterling was lower at USD1.3280 on Tuesday from USD1.3305 at the time of the London equities close on Monday. Versus the euro it declined to EUR1.1685 from EUR1.1698. The euro itself fell to USD1.1361 from USD1.1376. The dollar was up at JPY163.92 from JPY163.67.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury narrowed to 4.62% early Tuesday afternoon, the eve of the next Federal Reserve decision, from 4.65% late Monday afternoon. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury eased to 5.11% from 5.13%.
In New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was called up 0.3%, but the S&P 500 down 0.1% and the Nasdaq Composite 0.8% lower.
In Asia, it was Tokyo's Nikkei 225 and Kospi in Seoul that were hit the hardest by the chip woe. The Nikkei slumped 4.0%, while the Kospi plunged 11%, after a circuit breaker was triggered.
"As we move through the week, an interesting dynamic is taking place. On the surface, stocks look good. Indices are performing well, and European stocks are higher today. Global bond yields are falling as the oil price continues its retreat as the direct conflict between Iran and the US remains on pause," XTB analyst Kathleen Brooks commented.
"However, the driver of market risk has shifted from geopolitics to concerns about the AI trade. Underneath the surface, one of the biggest themes for global markets is struggling."
In New York on Monday, Nvidia shed 5.0%, sending its market capitalisation to USD4.76 trillion, below Apple's USD4.95 trillion.
Brooks added: "The sell-off in Nvidia and the chip space more generally, came after reports that Nvidia will provide USD250 billion in financing guarantees for the 10 gigawatt OpenAI data centre in Ohio. This would help the developers to secure construction financing for what is expected to be the world's largest data centre. Reports also suggest that Nvidia could provide another USD350 billion for chip purchases. The data centre is expected to take 2 years to build. This news highlights two issues for investors right now: 1, the amount of money involved to secure AI infrastructure is getting larger and larger, leading to bubble fears, 2, investors are running out of patience to see these investments pay off."
The threat of Chinese competition also intensified, sending ASML down 8.5% in Amsterdam on Monday. It lost another 2.4% on Tuesday.
Reverberations of the tech woe were among London-listed investment trusts. Polar Capital Technology Trust fell 2.3%, while Pacific Horizon Investment Trust was 4.9% lower.
Away from chips, numbers from LVMH after the closing bell on Monday put luxury in focus. It reported first half revenue fell 2.9% to EUR39.81 billion a year ago. Revenue increased by 4% excluding the impact of the Middle East conflict, the company said.
Analysts at Deutsche Bank commented: "The lack of sequential improvement in the Chinese cluster (local and tourist demand flat vs 1Q) and in Asia will likely offset the positives for investors in our view. Commentary that Chinese demand is becoming increasingly event-driven is also unlikely to provide investors with tangible evidence of a sustained recovery."
LVMH was down 2.0% in Paris.
Gold fell to USD4,022.63 an ounce midday Tuesday from USD4,077.10 late Monday. Brent fell further to USD86.34 from USD89.71.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi held separate phone calls on the Strait of Hormuz with his Omani and Saudi counterparts Badr Al-Busaidi and Faisal bin Farhan, state TV said Tuesday.
During the calls, "they stressed the need to strengthen cooperation and advance joint diplomatic efforts to establish stability in the region and eliminate the insecurity imposed on the Strait of Hormuz due to the aggressive actions of the US," the state broadcaster added.
Iran has maintained control over the strait since the start of the Middle East war on February 28, disrupting shipping through the vital conduit.
US President Donald Trump on Monday voiced optimism at the prospects for a negotiated peace deal with Iran, as the two sides held their fire for a third consecutive day.
But the US leader expressed hope that renewed diplomacy could bring an end to the war that began in late February with a wave of US-Israeli strikes, rattling both the region and the global economy.
"I have a lot of patience...We'll see what happens," he said aboard Air Force One. "I think there is a good chance that something could happen."
In London, banking shares fell, led lower by Barclays. Barclays raised full-year total income guidance after a strong second quarter led by its investment banking division, but higher costs and a mixed divisional performance saw shares fall.
The London-based financial services company said pretax profit leapt 31% to GBP3.25 billion in the quarter ended June 30 from GBP2.48 billion the year prior, with total income surging 16% to GBP8.34 billion from GBP7.19 billion.
Total income beat company-compiled consensus of GBP8.12 billion, with pretax profit beating a forecast of GBP3.12 billion.
But Barclays UK pretax profit was 3% shy consensus, while Barclays Private Bank and Wealth Management was 5% short of consensus and Barclays US Consumer Bank 7% below.
Barclays now expects total income of around GBP31.5 billion, ahead of a prior forecast of around GBP31 billion. Total income in 2025 amounted to GBP29.14 billion.
Barclays upped its dividend to 5.9 pence per share from 3.0p, and it announced a new GBP1.0 billion buyback.
Shares fell 5.2%, while NatWest declined 1.4% and Lloyds fell 1.3%.
Unilever surged 7.7%, the best FTSE 100 performer. The consumer goods firm lifts its annual outlook.
It now expects underlying sales growth for 2026 within its 4% to 6% multi-year guidance range, "with around 3% underlying volume growth". It previously saw USG for the full year at the bottom end of the 4% to 6% range, with "at least 2% underlying volume growth".
Admiral rose 4.3% after Citi lifted the insurer to 'buy' from 'neutral'.
Elsewhere in London, Empresaria rose 16%. Net fee income in the first half of 2026 climbed 5% on-year "despite generally challenging market conditions", the recruitment firm said.
It expects adjusted pretax profit to rise almost four-fold during the half-year and now sees it amounting to GBP5.2 million for the whole of 2026, 27% above the market forecast.
Over in Frankfurt, Mercedes-Benz motored 3.6% higher, but it lowered its annual forecast. It now expects revenue for 2026 "slightly below" 2025's level. It had previously predicted a revenue outcome in line with the prior year.
By Eric Cunha, Alliance News news editor
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