Europe midday: Stoxx set for first weekly loss in a month

24th Apr 2026 11:32

(Sharecast News) - European shares were lower on Friday as optimism around the Iran war ceasefire started to dissipate, priming continental markets for their first weekly loss in more than a month.

The pan-regional Stoxx 600 was down 0.63% to 610 at 0819 BST. The index has fallen by almost 2.8% so far this week after four weeks of gains.

Germany's DAX fell 0.35%, Italy's MIB was 0.89% lower and France's CAC 40 declined by 0.83%.

Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.55% despite official data showing retail sales grew an unexpected 0.7% month-on-month in March as motorists stocked up on petrol in response to higher prices due to the Iran War.

Oil prices remained above $100 a barrel with Brent crude hitting $107 as the two way blockade of the Strait of Hormuz continued and no sign of any peace talks between the warring parties on the horizon.

Meanwhile US President Donald Trump said there would be a three week extension to the ceasefire in the war between Israel and Lebanon but also replied "Don't rush me" when asked how long he was willing to wait for a long-term peace deal with Iran.

"European markets continue to trend lower, as traders weigh up the prospective crisis looming large as Trump warns that he has all the time in the world to resolve the crisis in Iran. This is certainly not the case, with Asian shortages soon to reach European shores as the final ships that left the Straits back in March reach their destination," said Scope Markets analyst Joshua Mahony.

"The big-ticket story in Europe remains the airline cancellations, and while the cancellation of 20,000 Lufthansa flights may seem significant, that is likely to be the tip of the iceberg. Somewhat incredibly, the shareprice for UK airlines giant IAG remains in the middle of the 350-450p range exhibited over the course of the past 10-months. Is this this simply the calm before the storm?."

In equity news, Tomra Systems slumped as the Norwegian recycling specialist missed first-quarter revenue estimates.

Sweden's Indutrade also fell sharply as earnings fell more than expected, while paper and packaging giant Mondi was down on the back of a significant decline in first quarter core earnings.

On road crane maker HIAB surged as it lifted profit margin guidance.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com