European equity markets were little changed on Tuesday as investors adopted a cautious stance towards technology stocks amid growing concerns over valuations linked to the artificial intelligence boom, while attention also turned to the NATO summit in Turkey for potential defence spending announcements.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index was broadly unchanged at 650.84 points by 07:13 GMT after ending the previous session just below record highs.
Technology stocks lead market declines
Technology shares were the weakest performers, with the sector falling 1.6% as semiconductor companies extended the global selloff triggered by concerns that the recent rally in AI-related stocks may have become overstretched.
Chip equipment manufacturer ASML (EU:ASML) and semiconductor producer Infineon (TG:IFX) both declined around 4%.
Siemens Energy (TG:SIE) also came under pressure, falling 5.5% after Barclays downgraded the stock to “underweight” from “equal-weight.”
The weakness followed a negative session in Asia, where Samsung Electronics (USOTC:SSNHZ) shares fell despite issuing strong earnings guidance, while Nasdaq futures were also trading nearly 1% lower, reflecting broader caution towards technology shares.
Defence companies remain in focus
In contrast, European defence stocks edged higher as investors monitored the NATO summit in Turkey, where member states were expected to announce new defence agreements in response to continued pressure from the United States to increase military spending across Europe.
The defence sector has been the strongest performer within the STOXX 600 so far this month.
Swedish defence manufacturer Saab (TG:SDV1) gained 5.3% after Morgan Stanley upgraded the stock to “overweight” from “underweight.”
Shell advances after guidance update
Elsewhere, Shell (LSE:SHEL) rose 2.2% after the energy group modestly increased its outlook for integrated gas production during the second quarter.
Leave a Reply