LIVE MARKETS-Before the bell: downbeat sentiment on a busy day

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BEFORE THE BELL: DOWNBEAT SENTIMENT ON A BUSY DAY

Yesterday's Middle East peace talk optimism and the chunky fall in oil prices that gave markets a boost is now yesterday's news.

So far on Tuesday, Brent crude futures are back up 1.8% after the US carried out strikes on Iran's Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz. Add some worries about AI and earnings to the mix, with Apple AAPL.O warning on Monday that the cost of memory chips would continue to rise and outlining a weaker outlook, and you get quite downbeat equities.

Oh and don't forget US midterms...

Even stocks in Europe, although they're typically quite shielded from tech wobbles, are set to start the day lower as broader sentiment has turned more risk-off against that backdrop. Euro STOXX 50 futures are down 1.3%, DAX futures are 1.2% lower. CAC and FTSE futures are looking a little bit stronger, down 0.8% and 0.6% respectively.

There's a flurry of earnings in Europe this morning too.

To name a few, Swiss speciality chemicals maker Clariant CLN.S reported weaker-than-expected core profit in the third quarter, and German fashion group Hugo Boss BOSSn.DE late on Monday cut its outlook for annual sales and operating profit.

German pharmaceuticals and agriculture group Bayer BAYGn.DE meanwhile raised its 2026 profit outlook as its pharma business performed better than anticipated, and Dutch healthcare technology manufacturer Philips PHG.AS beat market expectations for third-quarter core earnings.

(Sophie Kiderlin)

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