Europe close: London and Frankfurt stocks post new records

(Sharecast News) - European stocks finished mildly higher on Tuesday despite rising concerns about an escalating trade war, though gains were only mild with the Stoxx 600 eking out a new record high. The Stoxx 600 index rose 0.23% to a new high of 547.18, with London's FTSE 100 and Frankfurt's DAX 40 also closing a new records, having now gained 6.3% and 10.1% so far this year, respectively.

Markets were mostly rangebound for the morning session but rallied in the afternoon, with notable performances in Frankfurt (+0.6%), Madrid (+0.5%) and Milan (+0.9%) in particular.

Despite the gains, Monday evening's launch of 25% tariffs on US steel and aluminium imports was continuing to weigh on investors' minds. The latest protectionist measures come ahead of a string reciprocal tariffs that Donald Trump has promised to unveil in the coming days, targeting countries that already charge additional duties on American-made goods.

Analyst Joshua Mahony from Scope Markets, said Tuesday's trading had a "relatively indecisive tone, with tariff fears casting a shadow over the bulls for the time being". He said: "Trump's promise that he will apply reciprocal tariffs today brings a high degree of uncertainty."

Market movers

SGS was the highest riser of the day, jumping 7% after the Swiss testing and inspection group impressed with guidance of 5-7% organic sales growth in 2025.

Shares in sports betting and gaming group Entain dropped 11% after the revelation that chief executive Gavin Isaacs has left the UK company with immediate effect after just five months. Entain did not disclose a reason for the abrupt departure, but said that the decision was "by mutual agreement".

Also under pressure in London was housebuilder Bellway after reporting that it didn't experience a typical seasonal step-up in demand in the autumn due to rising mortgage rates. While the company reiterated full-year guidance, shares were down more than 5%.

French luxury goods giant Kering gave up earlier gains but still finished higher as investors digested fourth-quarter results. Revenues beat market forecasts, though sales at the struggling Gucci brand dropped 24%.

German travel and tourism group TUI fell 11% after underwhelming with a 13% increase in first-quarter revenues. The company said summer bookings in its airline division were up just 2% in the last three months of 2024 compared to the prior year, a sharp deceleration from 7% growth in the prior quarter.

Also disappointing was UniCredit despite reporting strong fourth-quarter earnings, allowing the Italian bank to raise shareholder returns even as it prepared for a slight revenue decline in 2025.

Nordics-focused insurer Sampo was registering sharply lower in Helsinki after a four-for-one stock split came into effect.