Banks boost European markets as earnings season continues

DCM Editorial Summary: This story has been independently rewritten and summarised for DCM readers to highlight key developments relevant to the region. Original reporting by Irish Times, click this post to read the original article.

European shares closed higher ‌on Tuesday on the back of broad-based gains from banking and healthcare stocks, as earnings season continues.

Dublin

The Iseq All-Share index ended the session at 12,785.38, down 0.70 per cent.

Shares in Kerry Group, the Irish food ingredients multinational, plunged 6.4 per cent on Tuesday after the company reported a dip in revenue and profit last year. The biggest mover on the day, Kerry said revenue dropped 2.5 per cent to €6.8 billion in 2025, while profit after tax fell 10 per cent to €659 million, with weakness in the dollar being cited as a cause.

Insulation and building materials specialist Kingspan fell 2.39 per cent to €77.75 on the day.

It was a good session for the banks, AIB added 1.11 per cent and Permanent TSB rose 1.61 per cent. Bank of Ireland shares rose 1.46 per cent. After close the bank said it will exit its US ⁠Leveraged Acquisition ‌Finance business, ‌after ​completing ⁠a strategic ​review.

London

The UK’s FTSE 100 index added 0.79 per cent to reach a new record high at 10,556.17. The index outperformed regional comparators as investors shored up bets on the Bank of England cutting interest rates in March after unemployment increased, while the pound fell.

Antofagasta fell 5.7 per cent as it posted revenue and operating profit below analyst expectations.

Peers Endeavour Mining, Anglo American and Fresnillo were also down 4.2 per cent, 2.4 per cent and 2.1 per cent respectively.

On the FTSE 250 index, Raspberry Pi led the way as its shares jumped 36 per cent. Bloomberg News reported that the gains were driven by a social media post which said AI agents such as OpenClaw could drive demand for the firm’s single-board computers. The post on X attracted 200,000 views.

Applied Nutrition was 6.2 per cent higher as it raised its revenue forecast for its current financial year above market expectations, citing a strong first-half performance.

Europe

The European benchmark Stoxx 600 added 0.45 per cent, as banks extended gains from the previous session. The sector rebounded from recent pressure despite being among last year’s top performers.

German-pharmaceuticals company Bayer topped the index after saying its Monsanto unit had filed a proposed ‌US class settlement totalling as much as $7.25 billion that was aimed at resolving current and ​future claims that its Roundup weedkiller caused Non-Hodgkins lymphoma. The deal, if it is ratified, would bring certainty to an issue that has dogged Bayer in recent years.

Italian specialist lender BFF Bank lost 11.78 per cent to a record low as sources ​said investigations were ongoing into alleged false accounting at the lender. BFF confirmed in a statement news of the probe, saying it was aware Milan prosecutors had started the investigation at the end of 2023.

Spanish grid operator Enagas said it expects lower profit this ​year from 2025, and its Madrid-listed shares fell 0.93 per cent. Avolta added 5 per cent after UBS upgraded the Swiss travel retailer to Buy from Neutral.

New York

The main US stock indexes ‌were subdued in volatile trading midafternoon trading on Tuesday, as heavyweight technology stocks teetered following an AI-led sell-off and the financials sector outperformed the broader market.

On Monday, Alibaba unveiled a new AI model, Qwen 3.5, designed to independently execute complex tasks. Software stocks remained pressured, with the broader S&P 500 software index falling. ⁠CrowdStrike was in the red, down as much as 5 per cent in trading, with lesser tumbles by Adobe and Salesforce.

The S&P 500 ‌financials index was a bright spot and big banks ​such as Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase were up in the green which also supported the Dow.

Norwegian Cruise Line topped the S&P 500, jumping double digits after activist investor Elliott said it had built a more than 10 per cent stake in the cruise operator. Similarly, Fiserv’s shares gained after the Wall Street Journal reported activist investor Jana Partners had taken a stake in the payments company.

Warner Bros rejected Paramount’s ‌revised takeover bid, giving the studio a ⁠week to negotiate a better deal. Shares of both companies rose. – Additional reporting, Reuters, PA.