Reported by Jaime Sicilia Martínez
The main European indices have risen on the back of encouraging signs of progress towards an extension of the ceasefire between the United States and Iran. Consequently, oil prices are falling, whilst shares linked to AI continue to rise, particularly those in the memory chip sector due to supply shortages.
The Ibex 35 closed up 0.46% and the Euro Stoxx 50 fell by 0.1%. Over the week, the sectors that rose the most on the Stoxx Europe 600 were discretionary consumer goods, such as luxury goods, tourism and textiles.
In the Asia-Pacific region, the Hong Kong Hang Seng has rebounded by 0.6% and the Japanese Topix by 1.4%. The AI boom is driving Chinese companies, with increased exports of semiconductors, servers and hardware, offsetting the pressure from the appreciation of the yuan.
The S&P 500 is climbing towards record highs, rising for nine consecutive weeks and accumulating a 20% gain. It appears that the United States and Iran have reached a preliminary agreement to extend the ceasefire by 60 days, continue negotiations on the future of Iran’s nuclear programme and restore the flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz.
Consumer prices in Spain rose by 3.6% year-on-year in May and 2.8% in France driven by rising energy costs as a result of the conflict in the Middle East. It is forecast that the Eurozone will exceed April’s 3%.
According to Oxford Economics, a global food crisis caused by extreme weather events could push up prices in the Eurozone more than in G-7 countries.
A session of slight falls in IRRs for major sovereign bonds, despite inflation in France and Spain accelerating to its highest level since 2024, which strengthens the case for the European Central Bank to raise interest rates for the first time since 2023.
Thus, the 10-year Bund yield has fallen by 2 basis points to 2.94% and the Spanish benchmark by 2 basis points to 3.55%. The 10-year Treasury yield fell by 1 basis point to 4.44%.
Beyond a possible easing of geopolitical and supply tensions in the Middle East,oil prices are falling due to expectations of slower global economic growth and downward revisions to demand.
Gold has behaved this year as a risk asset, moving in a similar way to the stock market, and today is up 1.7% to $4,570.
Meanwhile, the one-month TTF gas price remains at high levels, rising by 60% in 2026.
