Newsquawk Daily European Equity Opening News - 13th April 2026

ASIA

APAC stocks declined after the negotiations marathon over the weekend between the US and Iran in Pakistan ended without an agreement, as the sides remained at loggerheads over Iran's nuclear ambitions. Furthermore, US President Trump announced a US naval blockade on ships travelling through the Strait of Hormuz, while the US military said it would start a blockade of Iranian ports on Monday at 10:00EDT/15:00BST, but would "not impede" vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz travelling to or from other countries. ASX 200 was dragged lower by underperformance in tech and miners, while energy was at the other end of the spectrum following a surge in oil prices. Nikkei 225 retreated amid headwinds from the higher energy prices, which weighed heavily on power companies and large manufacturers, while there were also recent suggestions from Japan's economy minister that BoJ policy to boost the yen could be an option to curb inflation. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp followed suit to the losses in regional peers, with sentiment not helped by another meagre PBoC liquidity operation and with a mixed performance seen in tech stocks.

EUROPEAN CLOSES

CLOSES: Euro Stoxx 50 +0.39% at 5,919, Dax 40 +0.20% at 23,855, FTSE 100 -0.03% at 10,601, CAC 40 +0.17% at 8,260, FTSE MIB +0.59% at 47,609, IBEX 35 +0.55% at 18,204, PSI -0.28% at 9,458, SMI +0.23% at 13,189, AEX +0.51% at 1,010

SECTORS: IT 1.82%, Materials 1.43%, Financials 0.54%, Consumer Disc 0.34%, Industrials 0.11%, Healthcare 0.07%, Consumer Stpl -0.10%, Telecoms -0.14%, Utilities -0.22%, Energy -1.19%

FTSE 100

GSK (GSK LN) - Co. announced findings from its global phase I BEHOLD-1 clinical trial for mocertatug rezetecan. Mocertatug rezetecan achieved confirmed objective response rates of 62% in platinum-resistant ovarian cancer and 67% in recurrent or advanced endometrial cancer. To add, the CEO stated that the Co. is planning five simultaneous late-stage trials of the drug. (GSK)

Rio Tinto (RIO LN) - Co. has drawn interest from more than a dozen potential bidders for its US critical minerals assets that could be valued as much as USD 2bln, Bloomberg reported citing sources. (Bloomberg)

Rolls Royce (RR/ LN) - Great British Energy-Nuclear has signed a contact with the Co. for the delivery of the UK's first SMRs as part of the Government's clean energy mission. (GOV.uk)

OTHER UK COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

DAX

OTHER GERMAN COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

CAC

Sanofi (SAN FP) / Regeneron (REGN) - The EU has approved Dupixent for the treatment of moderate-to-severe CSU in children aged two to 11 years with inadequate response to H1AH and who are naive to IgE therapy for CSU. (Sanofi)

OTHER FRENCH COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

PAN EUROPE

Geopols - The US delegation, led by Vice President Vance, left US-Iran talks in Pakistan to return to the US without an agreement after 21 hours of talks. US President Trump said the US Navy will begin the process of blockading any and all ships trying to enter or leave the Strait of Hormuz. US Central Command said it will begin implementing a blockade on all maritime traffic entering and leaving Iranian ports on April 13th at 17:00 Israeli time (15:00BST/10:00EDT). (Newswires) 

Infant Formula - New Zealand's A2 Milk lowered its revenue and earnings guidance after supply chain disruptions partly linked to the Iran war slowed shipments of China-label infant formula to distributors and retailers in China, the company said. (A2 Milk)

Pirelli (PIRC IM) - Italy’s government has exercised “Golden Power” to impose restrictions on Pirelli’s governance and shareholding structure, limiting Marco Polo/CNRC to appointing up to three directors (two independent) and barring them from key executive or committee roles. Any share transfers by Marco Polo/CNRC must be disclosed to authorities and cannot involve entities linked to Sinochem’s control. (Pirelli)

Poste Italiane (PST IM) - Poste Italiane has filed with CONSOB the offer document for its voluntary public totalitarian cash and share exchange offer for all ordinary shares of Telecom Italia (TIT IM), excluding those already held, covering up to 17.06bln shares. Under the terms, each TIM share tendered will receive a total consideration consisting of EUR 0.167 in cash plus 0.0218 newly issued Poste Italiane shares, which will carry full dividend rights and be listed on Euronext Milan. (Poste Italiane) Formalises the announcement made on 22 March 2026

BROKER MOVES

Verbund (VER AV) downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at Bank of America

SMI

Partners Group (PGHN SW) - Business Update: Co. continues to see positive fundraising momentum. New client demand totalled USD 8.3bln across all private markets asset classes and client strategies. For FY26, the Co. reconfirms its expected gross new client demand of between USD 26-32bln. (Partners Group)

Roche (ROP SW) - Co. receives the Elecsys NfL test has received CE mark approval for the detection of neuroinflammation in patients diagnosed with RRMS. (Roche)

OTHER SWISS COMPANIES

Sulzer (SUN SW) - Co. reports Q1 order intake CHF 853mln, -8.6% Y/Y, affirms 2026 organic intake growth of 1-5% and sales between 2-5%. Expects stronger Q2 order intake and a strong H2'26. (Sulzer)

BROKER MOVES

Schindler (SCHP SW) upgraded to Neutral from Sell at Goldman Sachs; analysts see backlog conversion and less reliance on China to boost growth prospects to upper-end of its guided range.

SCANDINAVIA

Norway Strikes - Norway's LO and Parat unions reached a wage deal with employer organisation NHO covering approximately 250,000 private-sector workers, averting a strike. The agreement includes a 4.4% pay increase for 2026, below Norges Bank's forecast of 4.5%, which would be the slowest wage growth in four years.

Var Energi (VAR NO) - Q1’26 Trading Update: Net production of oil, liquids and natural gas averaged 406 kboepd, +51% Y/Y. (Var Energi)

BROKER MOVES

Kone (KNEBV FH) upgraded to Buy from Hold at Danske Bank

Nokia (NOKIA FH) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Bank of America

Nokia (NOKIA FH) downgraded to Hold from Buy at Nordea

SKF (SKFB SS) upgraded to Buy from Hold at Nordea

Volvo (VOLVB SS) downgraded to Hold from Buy at Pareto

US

CLOSES: SPX -0.11% at 6,817, NDX +0.14% at 25,116, DJI -0.56% at 47,917, RUT -0.22% at 2,631

SECTORS: Consumer Staples -1.43%, Health -1.33%, Financials -1.06%, Energy -0.80%, Utilities -0.44%, Industrials -0.43%, Communication Services -0.28%, Real Estate +0.17%, Consumer Discretionary +0.55%, Materials +0.64%, Technology +0.76%.

Nasdaq 100 (NDX) - Sandisk (SNDK) will join the Nasdaq 100 index, replacing Atlassian (TEAM), prior to market open on 20th April.