May 19 ,2026
Synopsis
European equity markets are set to open higher, following broad gains on Monday. Asian equity markets mixed. ASX and Hang Seng firmer, but Nikkei lower. Kospi under pressure. Shanghai Composite little changed. US equity futures lower with S&P down 0.3%.
Markets focusing on more Iran war headline volatility with crude selling off after President Trump revealed he held off on planned military strikes against Iran on Tuesday, to allow time for talks on an agreement to end war. Trump said deal will include no nuclear weapons but there is high uncertainty whether two sides can bridge still-wide gaps in their demands. US unimpressed by Iran's latest proposal while Tehran signaling no movement from its red lines on nuclear and Strait of Hormuz. Trump said military prepared to strike in moment's notice if no deal reached.
Rates stabilization may help equity market sentiment following recent backup in yields. Pullback in oil helping somewhat. UK debt market encouraged by remarks by leadership hopeful Burnham, who said he would stick with fiscal rules if he became leader. Meanwhile, attention also on pressure on semi/memory names in Asia, which might spillover into Europe amid weakness in US where SOX extended pullback from last week's highs. While fundamental backdrop still considered very supportive for AI trade, there has been pickup in discussion lately about how positioning and technical signals left it vulnerable to pullback, especially with bond yields surging.
Also on today's agenda, EU's Hansen participating in the EP plenary debate on the presentation of the Fertilisers Action Plan and EU's von der Leyen delivers the opening speech at the European Clean Tech Conf. Elsewhere, Chancellor Merz hosts the President of the Swiss Confederation, Parmelin, with discussions focusing on bilateral cooperation as well as European, foreign, and security policy issues. A joint press conf will follow. Norway's minister of finance Stoltenberg among the participates at 21:10CET in joint Nordic debate broadcast organized by DR, SVT, YLE and NRK. In the UK, after MPs questions on Justice at 11:30, debate on the King's Speech continues with emphasis on energy security, whilst committee topics include innovation and global food security at 9:30, the OBR: 15 years at 9:45 (OBR officials and international experts give evidence), fairness in the food supply chain at 10:00, innovation in the NHS: personalised medicine and AI at 10:15, trade in a turbulent world: how should the UK deploy its trade instruments?, Convention establishing an International Claims Commission for Ukraine at 14:00, China and the UK economy at 14:30 and international climate policy at 15:00. In the morning, France's President Macron visits the REuse Economy trade fair (through Wed), whilst in the evening participates in the 5th Ministerial Conf. "No Money For Terror". Amongst events on Tue, Economist AI Compute Summit, Economist Impact event entitled 'New Public Administration - A New Relationship with the Citizen' and American Chamber of Commerce in Germany e. V. business conf, speakers include former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Paul Ryan and Stihl CEO Michael Traub.
In central banks, Norges Bank's Bech-Moen speech at 11:30CET at the Norwegian Housing Producers Assn. on monetary policy and outlook for the Norwegian economy. Riksbank's Bunge speech/panellist at 13:05CET on the impact of AI on the economy and monetary policy at the Tomorrow's society conf. ECB's Lane panellist at 14:00CET at The International Research Forum on Monetary Policy (Mon-Tue). AFME Annual European Financial Integration Conf (through Wed) sees ECB's Buch speech at 14:10CET, Bundesbank's Theurer panellist at 14:45CET, Ireland central bank's Makhlouf speech at 15:55. City Week sees among those delivering speeches and on panels BOE's Breeden at 9:10BST, Mills at 12:20 and Mutton at 15:00.
European macro data releases out today include UK Apr claimant count change, Mar ILO unemployment rate, Spain Mar trade balance, Eurozone Mar trade balance, Portugal Apr PPI
In earnings news, Standard Chartered (STAN.LN) unveiled new medium-term targets, including targeting ~18% RoTE in 2030. In Benelux, CMB.TECH (CMBT.BB) reported Q1 earnings, whilst in France, Aeroport de Paris (ADP.FP) issued April traffic figures. In other corporate developments, ArcelorMittal (MT.NA) launched a placement of ~23.9M shares in Vallourec (VK.FP) (~10% stake). In DACHs, Grizzly Research released a short report on Ottobock SE & Co. KGaA (OBCK.GR)
Politics/Macro/World News
EU braces for fertiliser squeeze triggered by Iran war - FT
Trump says he paused attack on Iran, signals a nuclear deal may be possible - Reuters
Burnham seeks to calm markets by committing to fiscal rules - BBC
EU Races to Finalize US Trade Deal to Avoid More Trump Tariffs - Bloomberg
German government launches multi-billion euro sale of Uniper -- Sueddeutsche Zeitung
Top company news
Earnings/updates
DACHs
ROS.AV (Rosenbauer International) -- reports Q1 EBIT €14.4M vs FactSet €9.8M
AEVS.SW (AEVIS VICTORIA) -- reports Q1 net income CHF 18.8M, up 53.2% y/y
HBH.GR (Hornbach Holding) -- reports FY EPS €8.66 vs FactSet €8.97 [7 est, €8.15-9.62]; revenues and EBIT in line with prelims; stable dividend of €2.40 per share proposed
XK4.GR (Gabler Group) -- reports Q1 revenue €5.5M in line with the company's expectations; issues FY26 guidance
Nordics
VOLV.B.SS (Volvo) -- Group North America reaches settlement with CARB
BAKKA.NO (Bakkafrost) -- reports Q1 operational EBIT DKK544M vs FactSet DKK487.5M [12 est, DKK386-575.0M]
CANTA.SS (Cantargia) -- reports Q1 EPS (SEK0.13) vs year-ago (SEK0.19)
GSF.NO (Grieg Seafood) -- extended Q1 trading update; group revenue NOK1.01B vs FactSet NOK863.6M [12 est, NOK562-1.34B]
ARCH.NO (Archer) -- reports Q1 adj net income $6.7M vs FactSet $3.6M; reiterates FY26 financial guidance
NANOFH.FH (Nanoform Finland) -- reports Q1 EPS (€0.04) vs FactSet (€0.05) [2 est, (€0.06)-(0.04)]
LAGR.B.SS (Lagercrantz Group) -- reports Q4 EPS SEK1.76 vs FactSet SEK1.56 [6 est, SEK1.53-1.58], raises dividend +14% y/y
UK
STAN.LN (Standard Chartered) -- unveils new medium-term targets, including targeting ~18% RoTE in 2030
BYG.LN (Big Yellow Group) -- reports FY EPS 59.0p ex-items vs FactSet 59.1p [13 est, 57.3-60.5p]
Benelux
CMBT.BB (CMB.TECH) -- reports Q1 net income $368.8M vs FactSet $343.7M [6 est, $318.7-357M]
BNJ.NA (Banijay Group) -- reports Q1 adjusted net income €56.9M, +18% vs year-ago €48.1M; reaffirms FY guidance
France
ADP.FP (Aeroport de Paris) -- reports April 2026 Paris Aéroport traffic 9.2M passengers; (1.3%) y/y
Also reporting today includes:
Earnings:
Austria Oberbank (OBS.AV),
Benelux: Aedifica (AED.BB)
Denmark: United International Enterprises (UIE.DC), Matas (MATAS.DC)
Finland: Nanoform Finland (NANOFH.FH)
France: Euronext (ENX.FP), Aramis Group (ARAMI.FP)
Germany: Heidelberger Druckmaschinen (HDD.GR), Jadestone Energy (8KW.GR), Dr. Hönle (HNL.GR)
Southern Europe: Fourlis Holdings (FOYRK.GA)
Sweden: NIBE Industrier (NIBE.B.SS), Isofol Medical (ISOFOL.SS)
UK: Diploma (DPLM.LN), DCC (DCC.LN), Cranswick (CWK.LN), SSP Group (SSPG.LN), Dr. Martens (DOCS.LN), C&C Group (CCR.LN), Avacta Group (AVCT.LN), Victorian Plumbing Group (VIC.LN), Topps Tiles (TPT.LN)
Trading Update:
UK: Currys (CURY.LN), Forterra (FORT.LN)
Traffic: VINCI (DG.FP)
CMD/Events: Oma Savings Bank (OMASP.FH), Orrön Energy (ORRON.SS) business update call, ATEME (ATEME.FP) tech day
M&A
DHER.GR (Delivery Hero) -- Naver says no decision yet on forming consortium with Uber to acquire Woowa Brothers
DG.FP (VINCI SA) -- acquires Modern Group of Companies; terms not disclosed
SDR.LN (Schroders) -- Soderberg & Partners expected to submit offer for Schroders' Benchmark unit - Sky News (18-May, 15:46 BST)
DOKA.SW (dormakaba Holding) -- acquires Airsphere GmbH; terms undisclosed
EVOK.LN (Evoke Plc) -- Bally's Intralot has requested, and the Evoke board has agreed to, an extension of offer to make an offer. by not later than 5.00 p.m. (London time) on 8-Jun-26
TRACT.FP (Teract) -- AMF announces results of the public buy-out offer filed by InVivo Group acting in concert with Founders' Companies of TERACT shares and BSAR B
NextEra Energy acquiring Dominion in all stock deal valued at ~$67B; D trading up, NEE down
Tenstorrent in talks with industry players including Intel and Qualcomm regarding takeover - Bloomberg
Healthcare
SAN.FP (Sanofi) -- notes data from global ElevAATe phase 2 study of efdoralprin alfa being presented at 2026 ATS International Conference
ROP.SW (Roche Holding) -- Roche to present new data at ASCO 2026, reinforcing giredestrant's potential to transform the treatment paradigm in early breast cancer
UCB.BB (UCB) -- UCB's BIMZELX (bimekizumab) demonstrates superior efficacy over SKYRIZI (risankizumab) in psoriatic arthritis: BE BOLD Week 16 data
FYB.GR (Formycon) -- launches FYB203 in EU
Other
HSBA.LN (HSBC Holdings) -- launches $4B Sustainability and Transition Credit Facility
BA.LN (BAE Systems) -- named principal contractor for $230M sale to Government of India
DTE.GR (Deutsche Telekom) -- Street Takeaways - Deutsche Telekom Q1 Earnings
LLOY.LN (Lloyds Banking Group) -- preparing push into US infrastructure investing, including data centers - FT
ENEL.IM (Enel) -- signs agreement for acquisition of nearly 270 MW in solar plant capacity in the US for $140M
EVO.SS (Evolution) -- announces €2B share buyback program
KPN.NA (Royal KPN) -- KPN completes previously announced €250M share buyback
ACS.SM (ACS SA) -- ACS placing up to ~16.5M shares (including up to 5.4M new shares) via accelerated bookbuild through BofA, CaixaBank and Société Général
IDR.SM (Indra Sistemas) -- Indra Group initiates selection process for a new CEO to succeed José Vicente de los Mozos Obispo (post EU close 18-May)
ACLN.SW (Accelleron Industries) -- commences previously announced share buyback program of up to CHF100M on 20-May-26
HOLM.B.SS (Holmen) -- board resolves to repurchase up to 3M class B shares
VRLA.FP (Verallia) -- reduces amount allocated to the liquidity agreement to €1.2M
SQN.SW (Swissquote Group Holding) -- Swissquote Group Holding's 1:10 share split will be registered on 26-May; split shares will start trading on SIX Swiss Exchange on 28-May 2026
Kongsberg Defence and Aerospace AS and RTX Corporation named principal contractors for $236M sale to Government of Belgium
Key rating changes
Upgrades
AMS.SW (ams-OSRAM) -- to overweight from neutral at JPMorgan
FLS.DC (FLSmidth & Co.) -- to buy from neutral at UBS
INTRUM.SS (Intrum) -- to buy from neutral at UBS
EMEIS.FP (Emeis SA) -- to hold from reduce at Kepler Cheuvreux
Downgrades
GXI.GR (Gerresheimer) -- to hold from buy at Jefferies
ADEN.SW (Adecco Group) -- to sell from neutral at UBS
VLX.LN (Volex) -- to hold from buy at Investec
Initiations
AUROORA.FH (Auroora Group)-- buy at Nordea
VOLCAR.B.SS (Volvo Car) -- neutral at Sparebank 1 Markets
JET2.LN (Jet2) -- underperform at BofA
Data
Nikkei (0.43%) to 60553.43
Hang Seng +0.21% to 25729.35
Shanghai Composite +0.26% to 4142.19
S&P futures (22.5) vs prior close of 7425.8
€-$ (0.0015) or (0.13%) to 1.1642
$-¥ +0.19 or +0.12% to 159.03
€-¥ +0.00 or +0.00% to 185.14
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