Newsquawk Daily European Equity Opening News - 1st April 2026

ASIA

APAC stocks mostly rallied with global risk sentiment buoyed by hopes for an end to the Iran conflict following encouraging comments from the US and Iran, while President Trump also suggested that the war could end in 2 or 3 weeks, and he will deliver a nationwide address on Wednesday evening to give an important update regarding Iran. ASX 200 gained at the open and was led by outperformance in mining, materials, resources and tech, with nearly all sectors in the green aside from some defensives, while the index also shrugged off weak PMIs. Nikkei 225 surged back above the 53,000 level amid hopes of a nearing end to the conflict and after the latest BoJ Tankan survey mostly topped forecasts, with the headline large manufacturing index at its highest in more than five years. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp conformed to the broad upbeat mood across the region with notable strength seen in mining, tech and biopharmaceuticals, while a miss on Chinese RatingDog Manufacturing PMI and the smallest PBoC injection in more than a decade failed to derail the momentum.

Chinese Data - Chinese RatingDog Manufacturing PMI (Mar) 50.8 vs. Exp. 51.6 (Prev. 52.1, Low. 50.5, High. 53). (Newswires)

EUROPEAN CLOSES

CLOSES: Euro Stoxx 50 +0.49% at 5,569, Dax 40 +0.31% at 22,633, FTSE 100 +0.49% at 10,178, CAC 40 +0.57% at 7,817, FTSE MIB +1.11% at 44,310, IBEX 35 +0.47% at 17,050, PSI +0.68% at 9,132, SMI +0.95% at 12,794, AEX -0.49% at 960

SECTORS: Industrials 1.11%, Financials 0.86%, Materials 0.65%, IT 0.53%, Energy 0.24%, Consumer Disc 0.21%, Telecoms 0.10%, Utilities 0.04%, Healthcare -0.08%, Consumer Stpl -1.39%

FTSE 100

UK Economy - UK government says new measures to ease cost of living pressure to come into force on April 1st Increasing national living wage to £12.71. Energy bills are to be cut by average £117 a year for millions across the UK and locked in until end of June. (Newswires)

OTHER UK COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

Babcock (BAB LN) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Citi

Barratt Redrow (BTRW LN) upgraded to Outperform from Sector Perform at RBC

Berkeley (BKG LN) upgraded to Sector Perform from Underperform at RBC

DAX

Adidas (ADS GY) / Puma (PUM GY) - NIKE (NKE) shares sank 9.3% after-hours following its Q3 results, where it reported a beat on its top- and bottom-line metrics, but noted of persistent weakness in China. Details in the US section below

OTHER GERMAN COMPANIES

Nordex Group (NDX1 GY) - Co. receives 35 MW order for wind farm in the Sauerland region in Germany. (Nordex)

BROKER MOVES

CAC

L'Oreal (OR FP) - L'Oreal and Kering announced the completion of L'Oreal's acquisition of Kering Beaute. (L'Oreal)

OTHER FRENCH COMPANIES

Atos Group (ATO FP) - Co. completes the sale of Bull, its Advanced Computing activities, to the French State, for an enterprise value up to EUR 404mln including contingent earn-outs totalling EUR 104mln. (Atos)

JCDecaux (DEC FP) - Co. expands its street furniture offering in Tokyo through the acquisition of Vista Communications Inc. (JCDecaux)

Technip Energies (TE FP) - Reju has been awarded EUR 135mln in funding under the NIKI program to support Reju’s planned industrial-scale regeneration hub at Chemelot Industrial Park in Sittard-Geleen. (Technip Energies)

Worldline (WLN FP) - Worldline announces the success of its share capital increase with preferential subscription rights for an amount of c. EUR 392mln as part of its c. EUR 500mln capital raise. (Worldline)

Wendel (MF FP) - Co. appoints Harper Mates as CEO of Wendel North America. (Wendel)

BROKER MOVES

Engie (ENGI FP) upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JPMorgan

PAN EUROPE

Fagron (FAGR BB) - Co. increases share capital through exercise subscription rights. (Newswires)

Geopols - US President Trump is to deliver a nationwide address on Wednesday to give an important update on Iran at 21:00EDT/02:00BST, according to the White House. US President Trump said to NBC News regarding the Iran war that "it is coming to an end". White House official said President Trump is confident that an agreement will be reached soon, and said Trump was clear about the consequences of failing to reach an agreement. UAE is preparing to help the US and allies open the Strait of Hormuz by force, according to WSJ. (Newswires / NBC / WSJ)

Greek stocks - MSCI Inc. upgraded Greece to developed-market status for the first time since 2013, with the change set to take effect in May 2027. The move signals Greece’s economic recovery and is expected to attract more global investment into its stock market. (Bloomberg)

BROKER MOVES

Heineken (HEIA NA) upgraded to Buy from Hold at HSBC

SMI

UBS (UBSG SW) - CEO says that in this environment, there are not a lot of alternatives to the US and the dollar. Regarding succession plans, the CEO says it will be a matter of choosing the person based on the current needs of the bank. (Newswires)

OTHER SWISS COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

Sandoz (SDZ SW) initiated with Buy at Goldman Sachs

SCANDINAVIA

Skanska (SKAB SS) - Co. divests an eldery care home in Sweden for SEK 340mln. (Skanska)

BROKER MOVES

Equinor (EQNR NO) downgraded to Sell from Hold at SEB

Kesko (KESKOB FH) resumed with Buy at Danske Bank

US

CLOSES: SPX +2.92% at 6,529, NDX +3.43% at 23,740, DJI +2.49% at 46,341, RUT +3.45% at 2,497.

SECTORS: Communication Services +4.41%, Technology +4.24%, Consumer Discretionary +3.27%, Industrials +3.23%, Financials +2.12%, Health +1.94%, Materials +1.85%, Real Estate +1.50%, Consumer Staples +0.01%, Utilities -0.09%, Energy -1.12%.

NIKE Inc. (NKE) - Q3 2026 (USD): EPS 0.35 (exp. 0.30), Revenue 11.28bln (exp. 11.23bln). Total Nike brand revenue 11.01bln (exp. 10.94bln). Gross margin 40.2% (exp. 39.8%). Greater China EBIT 467mln (exp. 269.5mln). Inventory 7.49bln (exp. 7.53bln). (Nike)

PVH Corp. (PVH) - Q4 20205 (USD) EPS 3.82 (exp. 3.31), Revenue 2.51bln (exp. 2.43bln). (Newswires)