The STOXX 600 held near a record close on Monday as investors weighed unresolved risk around the Strait of Hormuz against a heavy week of economic data. Iran said it is closing in on a shipping-lane deal with Oman, but the U.S. must still meet other conditions before the waterway fully reopens.
The pan-European STOXX 600 held near 660.12 points as of 0715 GMT on Monday. It closed at a record high on Friday, following a 1.7% weekly gain. Investors had credited that rally to expectations of lower U.S. borrowing costs on the back of soft jobs data and strong corporate earnings on both sides of the Atlantic. Monday's open stayed flat, however, as geopolitical risk pulled attention back to the Middle East.
Iran said it is nearing a final agreement with Oman on new shipping lanes through the Strait of Hormuz, though it repeated that the United States must still meet other conditions before the strategic waterway fully reopens. Brent crude futures rose 0.6% to $83.98 a barrel, with shipping through the waterway still reduced to a trickle. Europe's energy sector added 0.5%.
The technology sector led the gains, rising 0.7%. By contrast, media stocks fell 0.7%. Traders now turn to euro zone employment data and U.S. consumer price figures due later this week for clues on the interest rate outlook. With earnings season nearing its end, LSEG estimates show second-quarter STOXX 600 earnings are expected to rise nearly 21%, up from forecasts of about 12.5% in early May.
Source: Investing.com
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