European stocks decline as rising inflation and rebounding oil prices weigh on markets

The Ftse Mib closed down 0.84% at 51,371 points, with declines also recorded for the Dax, Ftse 100, Cac 40 and Ibex 35. The session was marked by two factors that compounded each other: rising inflation in some of the main European economies and a rebound in oil prices, with Brent gaining 2.6% to $98.7 a barrel. The news currently comes from a single source — MilanoFinanza’s reconstruction based on market data from Borsa Italiana and Refinitiv — with no independent confirmation available.

The rise in crude oil is not an isolated event: it is part of a broader movement triggered by US President Donald Trump’s refusal of an Iranian proposal for a seven-day truce, which envisaged the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. US stock futures fell as oil prices rose, reviving concerns about global energy supply and possible effects on inflation in the United States. This second piece of data is also based on a single source — InfoMoney — and should be read with the same caution applied to the first.

The two elements, although coming from distinct sources, describe the same mechanism from two different angles: on one hand the immediate reaction of European stock markets, on the other the dynamics of the oil market linked to tensions between the United States and Iran. Rising inflation in Europe and higher energy prices are feeding off each other, in a context where the conflict in the Middle East continues to weigh on investors’ expectations.

Based on the available material, it is not possible to establish whether the oil rebound is set to consolidate in the coming days, nor what the overall effect on European interest rates will be. The fact that remains established is the closing data: all the main indices across the continent ended the session in negative territory.