Key facts
- The STOXX 600 fell over 0.5% to 645.8 points, with tech stocks down 2%, per the report.
- A US official said the United States struck Iran's Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz, according to Reuters.
- Brent crude rose 1.6% to over $100 a barrel after a 7% fall in the previous session.
- Lufthansa said it was trimming its profit outlook as airlines absorb energy cost volatility.
- Bayer raised its 2026 profit outlook and was likely to be among top gainers.
- Apple's holiday-quarter gross margin forecast, which the report attributed to rising memory-chip costs, weighed on risk appetite.
Europe's STOXX 600 index fell over 0.5% to 645.8 points on Tuesday, November 3, led by a 2% decline in technology stocks, as concerns about the AI trade and Middle East tensions weighed on risk appetite.
Futures tracking the benchmark had slipped over 1% by 0712 GMT, with contracts on Germany's DAX and Spain's IBEX down about 1%, pointing to a lower open for European equities.
The move followed a US official's statement, reported by Reuters, that the United States carried out strikes on Iran's Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz. The reported strike came a day after Iran signalled openness to peace talks and President Donald Trump indicated he might be open to holding off on any strikes on Tehran after the midterm elections.
Brent crude gained 1.6% to over $100 a barrel, bouncing back from a 7% fall in the previous session. Airlines, which the report said have borne the brunt of volatility in energy costs, were in focus after German airline group Lufthansa said it was trimming its profit outlook.
AI-related stocks including Aixtron, ASML and Schneider Electric could also come under pressure following a selloff in Asian equities earlier in the day, the report said, as investors reassessed the AI trade after disappointing results from major US hyperscalers in the previous week. Apple's gross margin forecast for the holiday quarter, which the report attributed to rising memory-chip costs, also weighed on risk appetite.
Bucking the trend, German pharmaceuticals and agriculture group Bayer was likely to be among top gainers after raising its 2026 profit outlook.