2026.07.0707:34:18UTC+00European Stocks Lack Direction, Tech Sinks

The STOXX 50 and STOXX 600 were little changed on Tuesday, after modest losses in the previous session left both benchmarks trading slightly below their all-time highs. Sentiment was cautious, echoing the tone in Asian markets, where strong guidance from Samsung Electronics led investors to reassess the rich valuations behind the AI-driven rally, putting pressure on technology shares.

Samsung projected April–June operating profit of 89.4 trillion won, a 19-fold increase from a year earlier. Nonetheless, European chipmakers retreated, with ASML Holding down 3.9%, Infineon Technologies off 3.5%, and STMicroelectronics losing 3.3%. Siemens Energy sank 6% after Barclays cut its rating to “underweight” from “equal weight.”

These declines were largely offset by gains in consumer discretionary, consumer staples, and energy names. Shell (+2.3%), LVMH (+1.4%), L’Oréal (+2.1%), TotalEnergies (+1.0%), and Hermès (+1.5%) were among the strongest performers of the session.