European equities were mostly flat on Tuesday, as investors assessed fresh trade tensions triggered by U.S. President Donald Trump’s latest tariff proposals and their potential impact on global economic growth.
Trump announced Monday that new, elevated tariffs on imports from 14 countries will take effect on August 1 — a delay from the original July 9 start date. The European Union is said to be actively negotiating exemptions from the existing 10% U.S. base tariff.
In economic developments, Germany’s export sector showed continued weakness. According to Destatis, exports fell 1.4% month-over-month in May — marking the second consecutive monthly decline — amid sagging demand from the U.S. Imports also saw a steep drop of 3.8%, reversing the 2.2% rise seen in April.
By midday trading, the French CAC 40 had slipped 0.3%, while Germany’s DAX was hovering just above the flatline. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 posted a marginal gain of 0.1%.
In company-specific news, Hansa Biopharma saw its shares rise after naming Richard Philipson as its new chief medical officer. Basilea (TG:PK5) gained ground as well, buoyed by a $39 million injection from the U.S. Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) to advance its antifungal treatments Fosmanogepix and BAL2062.
Conversely, shares of Victrex (LSE:VCT) tumbled following the announcement of a leadership change and disappointing third-quarter revenue figures.
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