European stock markets started the week on a positive note with the statements that the USA and Iran are close to reaching an agreement.
As of 10.20 in European markets, the Stoxx Europe 600 indicator index is at 628 points, with an increase of 0.6 percent.
In Germany, the DAX 40 index is at 25,180 points with a 1.2 percent gain in value, in Italy the FTSE MIB 30 index is at 49,450 points with a 0.6 percent increase, in France the CAC 40 index is at 8,194 points with a 1 percent increase, and in Spain the IBEX 35 index is at 18,215 points with a 1.3 percent gain. There is no trading on the UK stock exchange today due to a holiday.
US President Donald Trump stated that the negotiations with Iran were progressing in an orderly and constructive manner and pointed out that they would not rush to reach a good agreement, strengthening the expectations that the parties could leave the reconciliation table by shaking hands.
The White House’s statement that they were in a “good point” for a possible agreement between the USA and Iran, but that it could take days to complete the agreement, and the New York Times (NYT) newspaper’s claim that the USA and Iran had reached an agreement on the “re-opening of the Strait of Hormuz”, fed this optimism.
Following this, expectations that the two countries could reach an agreement for the Strait of Hormuz to become fully operational again and for the uninterrupted maintenance of oil supply gained strength.
While the decline in energy prices across the region created optimism that inflation pressures could be alleviated, tightening expectations for the European Central Bank (ECB) remained strong in the markets.
