Key Points
- European stock markets rose slightly on Tuesday. Investors are still processing the new U.S.-EU trade deal and its 15% tariff.
- Eyewear giant EssilorLuxottica’s stock rose 5.3% after the company reported strong profits.
- Philips’ stock soared nearly 9% after it said the tariff impact would be less than feared.
- Car distributor Inchcape’s stock fell 6.6% after tariffs hurt its profits.
European stock markets edged higher on Tuesday, as investors assessed the impact of the new trade deal between the U.S. and the European Union. A handful of strong earnings reports, particularly from eyewear giant EssilorLuxottica, helped lift the major indexes.
The new trade pact imposes a 15% tariff on most goods coming from the EU. The market’s reaction has been mixed. Europe’s main STOXX 600 index initially jumped on the news on Monday. Still, it then reversed course as investors weighed the impact of the new levy, which is much higher than previous levels. Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC 40 both traded over 0.5% higher.
On the corporate front, there were some clear winners and losers from the deal. Shares of EssilorLuxottica, the Franco-Italian eyewear group, jumped 5.3% after it reported a strong first-half profit despite the tariffs. Dutch healthcare tech company Philips soared almost 9% after it lowered its estimate for the impact of tariffs on its business.
In contrast, Inchcape, a car distributor, saw its shares drop 6.6%. The company was the biggest decliner on the index after it posted a drop in its first-half profit, which it blamed on the impact of the new tariffs.
