Newsquawk Daily European Equity Opening News - 25th May 2026

ASIA

APAC stocks gained with risk appetite boosted by hopes of a nearing US-Iran deal after US President Trump announced on Saturday that an agreement has largely been negotiated, subject to finalisation and would include the reopening of Hormuz. Furthermore, a separate report noted there is agreement on 95% of a deal, but it needs to be drafted and is estimated to take 5-6 days to receive approval, while Trump also posted the following day that he informed representatives not to rush into a deal and stated that the blockade will remain in full force and effect until an agreement is signed. ASX 200 was led by outperformance in the mining, materials and resources sectors, while energy and defensives were at the other end of the spectrum amid lower oil prices and the positive risk tone. Nikkei 225 rallied to a fresh record high above the 65,000 level, with sentiment helped by lower oil prices and amid continued tech strength as SoftBank continued to add to the spoils from last week's surge. Shanghai Comp conformed to the positive mood following another liquidity boost by the PBoC, but with the upside limited amid the holiday closure in Hong Kong and the absence of Stock Connect flows.

Huawei - Co. says to release new Kirin chips by fall 2026 and it targets 1.4nm chip capability by 2031, while Co. claims new chip design method overcomes US sanctions. (Nikkei)

EUROPEAN CLOSES

CLOSES: Euro Stoxx 50 +0.99% at 6,019, Dax 40 +1.31% at 24,928, FTSE 100 +0.22% at 10,466, CAC 40 +0.37% at 8,116, FTSE MIB +0.70% at 49,511, IBEX 35 +0.06% at 17,985, PSI -0.66% at 9,167, SMI +0.42% at 13,503, AEX +0.97% at 1,045.

SECTORS: IT 4.33%, Industrials 1.22%, Materials 0.83%, Financials 0.51%, Healthcare 0.29%, Utilities 0.22%, Telecoms 0.21%, Consumer Disc 0.20%, Consumer Stpl 0.03%, Energy -1.63%

FTSE 100

Melrose Industries (MRO LN) - Around 40,000 people have been ordered to evacuate due to the threat of a chemical tank explosion in southern California. (Sky News)

OTHER UK COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

DAX

Bayer (BAYN GY) - Bayer’s USD 7.25bln proposal to settle thousands of US Roundup cancer lawsuits in Missouri faces opposition from lawyers seeking review by US District Judge Vince Chhabria in California, Bloomberg reports. Bayer and supporting plaintiffs’ lawyers oppose moving the case, while final approval in St. Louis is scheduled for 9th July. (Bloomberg)

DHL (DHL GY) - Co., alongside FedEx (FDX) and UPS (UPS), have sent a joint letter to EU finance ministers urging to phase in new duty rules on low-value packages, Reuters reports. (Reuters)

OTHER GERMAN COMPANIES

Delivery Hero (DHER GY), Uber (UBER) - Uber has offered to take over the Co. for EUR 33/shr, valuing the deal at around EUR 10bln. This comes after earlier reporting that Uber was exploring options for a full takeover of the Co. after boosting its stake to 19.5%, with an additional 5.6% in options, Bloomberg reports. (Bloomberg)

BROKER MOVES

CAC

Airbus (AIR FP) - Qantas Airways’ first customised Airbus A350-1000 has been delayed to April 2027 from end-2026 due to supply chain issues, Bloomberg reports. Qantas ordered 12 A350s for Project Sunrise ultra-long-haul flights linking Sydney with London and New York, and expects the next four aircraft to arrive quickly enough to restore the delivery schedule by November 2027. (Bloomberg)

BNP Paribas (BNP FP) - Co. has asked a federal appeals court to reverse the verdict of around USD 21mln over allegations it funded a regime in Sudan that committed widespread human rights abuses. (Bloomberg)

OTHER FRENCH COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

PAN EUROPE

Chip tariffs, ASML (ASML NA) - USTR Greer says the Trump administration continues to weigh tariffs on imported semiconductors to boost domestic chip manufacturing, however there are no immediate plans to impose new levies. (Bloomberg)

EU Banks - The ECB is convening banks on Tuesday to urge faster IT security efforts following risks exposed by Anthropic’ s Claude Mythos Preview, FT reports. ECB's Elderson warned that AI can uncover vulnerabilities within minutes of a patch's release and said European banks cannot use restricted access to Mythos as an excuse for inaction, as malicious actors could soon obtain the technology. (FT)

European Energy - France has proposed that incoming EU climate transition fund rules permit investment in oil and gas companies with a clear path to sustainability, without requiring Scope 3 emissions data, per a draft document seen by Bloomberg. The proposal pushes back against a European Commission plan to ban climate transition and sustainable funds from holding companies expanding fossil fuel production. EU member states are negotiating the rewrite of the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation ahead of parliamentary talks in the coming weeks. (Bloomberg)

EU-UK trade - The EU has reportedly turned down a proposal by the UK to create a single market for goods with the union, according to the Guardian. (The Guardian)

Geopolitics - US officials have voiced optimism over a deal with Iran, which would reopen the Strait of Hormuz. US officials said that nothing is ready to be signed as negotiators work through precise language, with final approval potentially taking several days. US President Trump said that he does not want to rush into an agreement, while US Secretary of State Rubio highlighted confidence that if an agreement is reached, it will be a good one.

Nexi (NEXI IM) - Italy's CDP has approved a plan to raise its stake in the Co. to up to 29.9%, Bloomberg reports. (Bloomberg)

BROKER MOVES

SMI

OTHER SWISS COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

SCANDINAVIA

Orsted A/S (ORSTED DC) - Orsted is exploring a sale of its US onshore renewables portfolio, which could fetch more than USD 1bln, Bloomberg reports. Co. is working with advisers on the potential divestment as it refocuses on European offshore wind. It separately agreed in February to sell part of its European onshore business to Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners for EUR 1.4bln. (Bloomberg)

BROKER MOVES

US

CLOSES: SPX +0.37% at 7,473, NDX +0.42% at 29,482, DJI +0.58% at 50,585, RUT +0.91% at 2,869

SECTORS: Communication Services -0.68%, Consumer Staples -0.09%, Real Estate +0.10%, Consumer Discretionary +0.20%, Financials +0.33%, Materials +0.35%, Energy +0.44%, Technology +0.52%, Industrials +0.68%, Utilities +0.80%, Health +1.19%.

Disney (DIS) - The Mandalorian and Grogu led the US and Canada box office over the four-day holiday weekend with USD 102mln in ticket sales (exp. 100mln), Variety reports. The first Star Wars film in seven years met estimates of at least USD 100mln, but was among the franchise's lowest debuts since Disney acquired Lucasfilm in 2012. (Variety)

SpaceX (SCPX) - Co.'s upgraded Starship has successfully deployed mock satellites and returned largely unscathed. (Bloomberg)