European stocks rose slightly on Tuesday, supported by a strong close on Wall Street overnight as the precious metals sell-off proved to be relatively short-lived.
At 11:05 Saudi time, the DAX index in Germany rose by 0.8%, the CAC 40 index in France rose by 0.4%, and the FTSE 100 index in the United Kingdom rose by 0.1%.
Calm in metal markets boosts sentiment
Global markets have calmed down, and European stocks appear to be no exception, after days of volatility marked by sharp declines in gold and silver prices, in particular, at the end of last week and over the weekend.
However, precious metals prices rebounded on Monday, boosting confidence and helping the Dow Jones Industrial Average index to post gains of more than 500 points, or 1%, on Wall Street.
Global sentiment also received a boost with US President Donald Trump's announcement late Monday of a trade deal with India that reduced tariffs on Indian goods to 18% from 50%.
The announcement came after months of negotiations during which punitive tariffs rose to 50%, and is widely seen as a step towards normalizing trade relations.
Publicis in the spotlight
In Europe, attention has returned to the quarterly earnings season, with a large number of major European companies expected to announce their results this week.
Publicis Groupe is in the spotlight on Tuesday as a string of key client wins lifted the French advertising giant's underlying revenues in the fourth quarter above expectations.
The group generated €2.03 billion in free cash flow before working capital changes in 2025, up 10.6% from the previous year, and proposed a dividend of €3.75 per share, up 4.2%, to be paid entirely in cash.
French asset management firm Amundi announced a 6% increase in adjusted pre-tax income for 2025 to €1.86 billion, driven by record net inflows of €88 billion as the company launched its new growth plan through 2028.
Akzo Nobel announced a healthy boost to fourth-quarter margins compared to the previous year, as the Dutch paint company grapples with weak demand and seeks a merger with its US rival Axalta Coating Systems.
There are also earnings on Wall Street to analyze on Tuesday, from companies such as PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL), Pfizer (NYSE:PFE), and Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC), ahead of Advanced Micro Devices' (NASDAQ:AMD) after-hours figures, with sentiment fragile toward AI-related stocks following last week's disappointing results from Microsoft Group (NASDAQ:MSFT).
French consumer prices fall
Data released earlier in the session showed that inflation remained contained in France, the Eurozone's second-largest economy.
French consumer prices fell 0.3% month-on-month in January, with an annual increase of just 0.3%, below the expected 0.6%.
The European Central Bank is holding a policy meeting later this week and is widely expected to keep interest rates steady at 2% for the fifth consecutive meeting.
European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde may face questions about the potential impact of a stronger currency on inflation, as the euro broke above $1.20 last week, reaching its highest level since 2021.
It has since declined but is still up more than 2% over the past two weeks.
Crude oil continues to decline
Oil prices fell on Tuesday, declining for a second day, as easing tensions between the United States and Iran removed some of the risk premium associated with the crude oil market.
Brent crude futures fell 0.4% to $65.96 a barrel, and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 0.4% to $61.90 a barrel.
Benchmark indexes fell more than 4% during the previous session after President Trump said Iran was talking seriously with Washington, signaling a relaxation of tensions with the OPEC member.
Iran and the United States are expected to resume nuclear talks on Friday in Türkiye, Reuters reported on Monday.
As prices were also pressured, the US dollar index hovered near its highest level in more than a week, affecting demand for dollar-denominated crude oil from foreign buyers.
