U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at a health care affordability event held at the South Court Auditorium of the White House on May 18, 2026 in Washington, DC.
Kent Nishimura | AFP | Getty Images
LONDON — European stock markets closed higher on Tuesday as investors assessed developments in the geopolitical and Middle East situation.
pan-european Stocks 600 The major stock exchanges in London, Paris, Frankfurt and Milan all rose, ending the day up almost 0.2%. Most regional sectors remained in positive territory.
German government announces plans to re-privatize energy group Uniperwas bailed out during the 2022 European energy crisis, costing taxpayers 13.5 billion euros ($15.71 billion).
The government, which owns 99.12% of Uniper’s shares, announced on Tuesday its intention to sell or list the group in what could be one of the biggest deals in Europe this year.
“We are more stable, more resilient and more strategically positioned. We have consistently aligned our business towards reliable earnings and have a strong balance sheet,” Uniper CEO Michael Lewis said on Tuesday.
The move sent Uniper shares up about 11.8% on Tuesday.
Elsewhere, defense stocks rose on reports that Sweden will buy naval frigates from France, its biggest military investment in decades. Swedish company Saab plans to develop radar and weapons systems for the country’s naval capabilities.
shares of serve It rose 5% after Tuesday’s closing, while the region’s STOXX Aerospace and Defense index rose about 1.7%.
Earlier, US President Donald Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Monday that he had told US military leaders to call off “an attack on Iran scheduled for tomorrow” following requests from the leaders of Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
President Trump added, “There will be a deal. It will be very acceptable not only to the United States, but to countries in the Middle East and beyond. Importantly, this deal will include no nuclear weapons in Iran!”
The president warned military leaders to “immediately prepare to launch a full-scale, large-scale attack on Iran if an acceptable agreement is not reached.”
Oil prices fell overnight following the statement. International Brent crude oil futures for July delivery were down 1.21% at $110.74 per barrel at 6:01pm BST. West Texas Intermediate futures for June were little changed at $108.67 per barrel.
In other geopolitical news, Russian President Vladimir Putin is scheduled to arrive in Beijing on Tuesday for a two-day summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, days after President Trump’s visit to China.
The summit, scheduled for May 19 and 20, will be the second meeting between Chinese and Russian leaders in the past year, as Beijing seeks to manage relations with the United States and Russia.
Britain’s unemployment rate rose to 5% in the three months to March from 4.9% in February, official data released on Tuesday showed.
Economists polled by Reuters had expected the unemployment rate to remain flat.
Jack Kennedy, senior economist at Indeed, said he expected the Iran war to weigh heavily on UK growth in coming quarters, further constraining demand for jobs. He added that the volatile domestic political backdrop meant “companies could do without uncertainty.”
“For the Bank of England, the[March unemployment rate]statistics do little to resolve the divisions in the Monetary Policy Committee,” he said. “A June interest rate hike remains on the table amid inflationary pressures from rising global energy prices, but monetary policy settings are already restrictive and the Committee will need to balance this with the significant risk of further labor market deterioration.”
The G7 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting will conclude in Paris on Tuesday. The meeting centered on the Iran war and how to reduce the impact of the conflict on the global economy.
French Finance Minister Laurent Lescure, who is chairing this week’s G7 meeting, told CNBC on Monday that it was important to understand the impact of the crisis on growth, inflation and budget deficits before making decisions.
