EUROPEAN OPEN: NESN SW sees cost pressure easing; IGG LN buys Underdog, pauses buybacks; NWG LN profit beats; LDO IM raises guidance after H1 growth; IAG LN profit falls, capacity seen flat; BP/ LN markets North Sea business; AAPL down, AMZN up

STOCK SPECIFICS:

• TECH: Apple (AAPL) shares fell over 6% in extended US trading despite a quarterly top- and bottom-line beat, as weak services, iPad and China sales, below-forecast revenue guidance and warnings of severe supply constraints weighed.
• CONSUMER DISCRETIONARY: Amazon (AMZN) shares rose over 10% in extended US trading after it reported faster AWS growth, while stronger-than-expected revenue reassured investors that heavier AI and data centre spending is being matched by accelerating cloud demand, despite its guidance coming in on the soft side. Brunello Cucinelli (BC IM) H1 revenue EUR 749.4mln (exp. 743.7mln), EBIT EUR 128.2mln (exp. 125.8mln); raised FY26 growth guidance to 10-11% (from 10%), and expects around 10% growth in FY27; regional sales rose 5.3% in Europe, 20.6% in the Americas and 14.1% in Asia. Puma (PUM GY) Q2 adj. sales EUR 1.69bln (exp. 1.66bln), adj. EBIT loss of EUR 42mln (exp. 55mln loss); confirmed FY guidance; CEO expects sequential sales improvement in H2 after the softer Q2.
• CONSUMER STAPLES: Sainsbury (SBRY LN) will sell Argos to Swift Partners for at least GBP 120mln; completion expected in February 2027. Nestle (NESN SW) CEO said cost pressure remained high in H1 2026; impact from cocoa and coffee should moderate in H2, although price developments are expected to remain volatile.
• CONSUMER DISCRETIONARY: Tesla (TSLA) is considering separating its China business through a sale, spinoff or closure before a potential SpaceX merger, WSJ reports; the move would address geopolitical and regulatory concerns linked to SpaceX’s US defence work.
• COMMUNICATIONS: UMG (UMG NA) H1 revenue EUR 6.19bln (exp. 6.21bln), adj. EBITDA of EUR 1.31bln (exp. 1.34bln). Q2 revenue reached EUR 3.29bln (exp. 3.27bln), while subscriptions and streaming growth was 15.5% (exp. 16.6%), and adj. EBITDA EUR 674mln (exp. 707.9mln). ITV (ITV LN) H1 revenue GBP 1.89bln (vs 1.85bln Y/Y), adj. EBITA GBP 145mln (vs 142mln Y/Y), adj. EPS of 2.2p (vs 1.8p Y/Y); backed FY26 guidance, and launched a GBP 100mln share buyback.
• FINANCIALS: Banco Santander (SAN SM) plans to acquire the roughly 10% of Santander Brazil it does not own through voluntary exchange offers in Brazil and the US; the deal values the minority stake at up to EUR 1.91bln, offers a 15% premium, and could require issuing about 156mln new Banco Santander shares. HSBC (HSBA LN) announced agreements to sell its AUD 36bln portfolio of Australian home loans and personal home loans to Virgo Bidco Pty Ltd. Credit Agricole (ACA FP) Q2 revenue EUR 7.36bln (exp. 7.03bln), net income EUR 2.05bln (exp. 1.93bln); operating costs were EUR 3.87bln (exp. 3.83bln), while asset-gathering and large-customer revenue beat expectations, and CET1 reached 11.3% (exp. 11.2%). IG Group (IGG LN) H1 revenue GBP 642.8mln (vs GBP 268mln Y/Y), core profit +4% at GBP 282mln; agreed to acquire Underdog for up to USD 1.3bln, and will pause share buybacks, with a potential 2027 resumption subject to its Jersey redomicile, share performance and capital requirements. AXA (CS FP) H1 net income EUR 4.17bln (exp. 4.42bln), gross written premiums and other revenue rose to EUR 66.29bln (vs 64.25bln Y/Y); underlying earnings increased to EUR 4.54bln; FY26 underlying EPS growth expected at the upper end of its 6-8% target range. Euronext (ENX FP) Q2 adj. EPS EUR 2.39 (exp. 2.20), underlying revenue EUR 544.4mln (exp. 523mln), adj. EBITDA EUR 360mln (exp. 326.56mln); CEO cited momentum towards a more integrated, liquid and competitive European capital markets. NatWest (NWG LN) Q2 pretax operating profit GBP 2.29bln (exp. 2.01bln), total income rose to GBP 4.504bln, attributable profit to GBP 1.603bln and EPS to 20.1p; NIM increased 21bps to 2.49%, RoTE reached 21.0%, and an interim dividend of 12.0p was declared.
• INDUSTRIALS: Leonardo (LDO IM) H1 adj. net income EUR 476mln, revenue EUR 10bln, new orders EUR 16.3bln, order backlog EUR 58.6bln; raised FY26 guidance to orders of about EUR 28.2bln, EBITA of EUR 2.21bln, FOCF of EUR 1.37bln, with ROS at 10.0%. IAG (IAG LN) H1 revenue GBP 16.06bln (vs 15.91bln Y/Y), operating profit GBP 1.61bln (vs 1.88bln Y/Y), profit after tax GBP 1.03bln (vs 1.30bln Y/Y); H2 2026 bookings are around 57%, with FY capacity now expected to be flat and about 60% of higher fuel costs recovered. ThyssenKrupp Nucera (NCH2 GY) reported Q3 prelim sales of EUR 145mln (exp. 108mln), EBIT EUR 2mln (vs zero previously), and order intake of EUR 81mln (vs 63mln); sales exceeded expectations due to earlier-than-anticipated revenue recognition from major new-build projects.
• ENERGY: Shell (SHEL LN) agreed to sell BG Cyprus Limited to MOL Group for up to USD 720mln. BP (BP/ LN) is launching a process to market its North Sea business for a potential sale as part of a portfolio review.
• MATERIALS: Holcim (HOLN SW) H1 revenue CHF 7.93bln (exp. 7.81bln), recurring EBIT CHF 1.44bln (exp. 960mln); raised FY26 sales growth guidance to around 5% (from 3-5%), and recurring EBIT growth guidance to 10% (from 8-10%). Glencore (GLEN LN) reached a processing agreement with HES International to supply feedstock to the Whiting refinery and sell its refined products, according to Reuters.
• HEALTHCARE: Siemens Healthineers (SHL GY) Q3 revenue EUR 5.76bln (exp. 5.81bln), net profit EUR 669mln (exp. 491mln), adj. EBIT EUR 1.1bln (exp. 890mln); raised FY26 adj. EPS view to 2.35-2.45, but cut comparable revenue growth guidance to 3.5-4.0%.
• UTILITIES: Engie (ENGI FP) H1 net income EUR 3bln (exp. 2.88bln), EBITDA EUR 14.1bln, revenue EUR 57.4bln; raised FY26 recurring net income guidance to EUR 4.9-5.5bln (from EUR 4.6-5.2bln). Enel (ENEL IM) H1 revenue EUR 40.9bln (exp. 40bln), ordinary EBITDA EUR 11.84bln (vs EUR 11.47bln Y/Y), net income EUR 3.93bln (vs EUR 3.82bln Y/Y); expects FY26 EPS of around 0.74, the upper end of its guidance range.
• NOTABLE BROKER UPDATES: Hexagon (HEXAB SS) reinitiated with Neutral at Goldman Sachs. Subsea 7 (SUBC SS) upgraded at SEB; Aixtron (AIXA GY) upgraded at Oddo Securities; CVS Group (CVSG LN) upgraded at Barclays; Mondi (MNDI LN) upgraded at Morgan Stanley. Arcadis (ARCAD NA) downgraded at KBC; Rentokil Initial (RTO LN) downgraded at BNP Paribas.

DAY AHEAD:

• DATA: In Europe, Eurozone flash July CPI is expected to see the headline rise to 2.9% Y/Y (prev. 2.8%) and the core measure unchanged at 2.4% Y/Y. Italy preliminary CPI is seen easing to 2.8% Y/Y (prev. 3.0%) with HICP at 2.8% Y/Y (prev. 3.0%). Germany unemployment is seen unchanged at 6.3%). In North America, Q2 Employment Cost Index is due (prev. 0.9% Q/Q); University of Michigan consumer sentiment final reading is seen at 54.0 (prev. 49.5), current conditions at 54.9 (prev. 47.7), and expectations at 54.0 (prev. 50.7), with 1-year inflation expectations at 4.2% (prev. 4.6%); the Chicago PMI is seen easing to 56 (prev. 56.7). Canada May GDP is seen rising 0.2% M/M (prev. 0.5%).
• CENTRAL BANKS: Fed’s Hammack (2026 voter, hawk), Logan (2026 voter, hawk) and Kashkari (2026 voter, neutral) will likely release speeches explaining their hawkish dissents at this week’s FOMC. BoE’s Pill (hawkish) appears at National MPC Agency briefing; BoE publishes Market Participants Survey.
• EARNINGS: Notable companies reporting today include: ExxonMobil (XOM), AbbVie (ABBV), Chevron (CVX), Linde (LIN), Eaton (ETN), Colgate-Palmolive (CL), Dominion Energy (D), Ares Management (ARES), Cboe Global Markets (CBOE), T. Rowe Price (TROW), Church & Dwight (CHD), Moderna (MRNA), LyondellBasell (LYB), Franklin Resources (BEN), Federal Realty Investment Trust (FRT).
• ENERGY: Brent September 2026 futures expire; Baker Hughes reports weekly rig counts (prev. oil 450, gas 127, total 587).
• CRA: Potential rating reviews today include: Scope Ratings reviews Switzerland (AAA).