Oil and AI optimism lifts shares but inflation concerns remain
Global shares were mixed on Tuesday as optimism over falling oil prices was countered by concern about the impact of still-elevated energy prices on inflation in the world’s big economies. Meanwhile, investors piled into tech stocks as the media pored over Anthropic’s initial public offering (IPO) prospectus. Dublin The Iseq added almost 0.3 per cent, pulled higher by index heavyweight Kingspan . The Irish insulation giant advanced to €102.30 per share, a day after completing its €900 million acquisition of Meath-based data centre supplier BMC Manufacturing. Ryanair also rose by 0.3 per cent to €23.44 per share. It was an otherwise tough session for the big names in Dublin, with Kerry Group falling by 1.1 per cent to €84.60. Glanbia , meanwhile, slid by almost 1 per cent, with its shares down by almost 1.4 per cent in the week since Bank of America analysts slated the stock to underperform. London British shares advanced in the early part of the session before reversing course in the afternoon. The benchmark FTSE 100 fell by 0.5 per cent while the mid-cap FTSE 250 index was largely unchanged. AstraZeneca initially led the blue-chip index higher after it said it would invest $2 billion in Summit Therapeutics and collaborate on a series of studies testing cancer treatments together. However, the stock finished down by 0.5 per cent in choppy trading in London. Its peer, GSK , also slipped by 0.2 per cent. Oil majors Shell and BP weighed heavily on the index, dropping by 1.7 per cent and 2.3 per cent, respectively, amid falling oil prices. Among individual stocks, British American Tobacco slipped 1.9 per cent after warning its annual growth is likely to come in at the lower end of its forecast range. Europe European shares were mixed with the blue-chip Stoxx 50 up by 0.4 per cent, while the cross-continental Stoxx 600 fell by 0.1 per cent. Technology shares led sectoral gains, rising to their highest level in a month. German semiconductor company Infineon surged by almost 5 per cent to the top of the benchmark index, while its Dutch rival, ASML, advanced by just over 4 per cent. Energy stocks also gained with Iberdrola and Enel up by 0.8 per cent. Siemens Energy climbed by 3.5 per cent, meanwhile. Among individual stocks, Lindt slipped by almost 9 per cent to become the Stoxx 600’s biggest decliner. Shares fell after the Swiss chocolatier cut its 2026 sales forecast for the second time this year, citing subdued consumer sentiment, rising price sensitivity and weak demand during a European heatwave. New York US stocks joined bonds lower as a drop in oil prices did little to allay Wall Street’s concerns that still-elevated energy costs could fuel inflation and spur Federal Reserve rate hikes. Almost 400 companies in the S&P 500 fell, with the gauge, down by 0.4 per cent, posting back-to-back losses. The Nasdaq Composite was down by 0.1 per cent, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped by 0.6 per cent. Chipmakers helped offset declines as they recovered some ground after the previous session’s sharp fall. Micron jumped by more than 1.4 per cent. The broader Philadelphia chips index climbed 2.1 per cent. Megacap and growth stocks were mixed. Meta and Nvidia advanced, while Microsoft and Apple fell about 1 per cent each. Tech stocks were in focus as Anthropic’s IPO prospectus showed how the artificial intelligence (AI) lab has grown sharply in the last year but also posted wider losses. The company is targeting a $2 trillion-plus (€1.8 trillion) valuation, possibly setting a benchmark for how Wall Street measures AI leaders. – Additional reporting: Bloomberg, Reuters