European stocks traded mixed on Tuesday, with investors focused on the release of more quarterly corporate results, as well as UK labor market data and nuclear talks between the US and Iran.
At 11:05 AM Saudi time, the DAX index in Germany fell by 0.1%, while the CAC 40 index in France rose by 0.2% and the FTSE 100 index in the United Kingdom rose by 0.3%.
Mining results in the spotlight
The quarterly earnings season remains a focus for investors, with the heavyweight mining sector in the spotlight this week.
BHP Group (LON:BHPB) reported stronger-than-expected half-year underlying earnings driven by copper, which overtook iron ore for the first time in the earnings of the world's largest mining company, as prices for the red metal soared due to AI-driven demand.
Antofagasta (LON:ANTO) announced record earnings for 2025, driven by higher copper and by-product prices that led to a sharp increase in profits and cash flow. Revenue for the year also rose by 30%, reflecting stronger realized copper prices and higher by-product revenue.
This week sees results from Europe’s four largest mining companies - Rio Tinto (LON:RIO), Glencore (LON:GLEN), Anglo American (LON:AAL), as well as Antofagasta - at a time when the minerals they extract have reached new price levels.
Elsewhere, InterContinental Hotels (LON:IHG) posted a 16% increase in adjusted earnings for 2025, but its Americas business ended the year with revenue per available room down 2% in the fourth quarter, the largest quarterly decline of the year, as U.S. government travel and international inbound travel tumbled.
Spanish gas network operator Enagas (BME:ENAG) announced its return to profitability in 2025, exceeding its financial targets as results were supported by asset sales, a higher arbitration ruling related to its investment in Peru and cost controls.
The British labor market has declined.
Data released on Tuesday showed that the UK unemployment rate rose slightly in December while wage growth slowed, indicating further deterioration in the British labor market and putting pressure on the Bank of England to cut interest rates further next month.
The UK unemployment rate rose to 5.2% in the three months to December, from 5.1% in the previous month, the highest level since early 2021.
Meanwhile, annual British wage growth, excluding bonuses, fell to 4.2% in the final three months of 2025 compared to the same period the previous year, down from 4.4% in the three months to November.
The lack of signs of a recovery in the labor market and a further decline in wage growth support the idea that the Bank of England has at least two more interest rate cuts up its sleeve, with the chances of the next cut increasing in March rather than April, according to analysts at Capital Economics, in a note.
The German ZEW economic sentiment index is due to be released later in the session and is expected to show an improvement in confidence in the Eurozone's largest economy.
Crude oil prices fell ahead of key talks.
Oil prices fell on Tuesday as investors assessed the risk of supply disruptions from Iran ahead of nuclear talks with the United States later in the session.
Brent crude futures fell 0.7% to $68.15 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 0.6% to $63.12 a barrel, with no settlement level due to the U.S. holiday on Monday.
The United States and Iran are holding indirect talks in Geneva on Tuesday aimed at resolving their long-running nuclear dispute, but the U.S. military is simultaneously preparing for the possibility of weeks of operations against Iran.
Iran itself began a military exercise on Monday in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital international waterway and route for oil exports from the Arab Gulf states.
