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European shares steady as markets assess earnings, Middle East tensions

By Thomson Reuters Jul 24, 2026 | 2:18 AM

July 24 (Reuters) – European shares were largely unchanged on Friday and were on track for a weekly ​loss as investors assessed the ‌impact of rising oil prices from heightened Middle East tensions as well as another round of corporate earnings.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index ‌was ​flat at 639.36 by ⁠0705 GMT.

Germany’s DAX ⁠rose as SAP gained 4.5% after the software group reported second-quarter current cloud backlog growth ahead of analyst expectations.

The ​broader technology index was little changed on Friday, after falling over ⁠2% in the previous ⁠session following lacklustre updates from ​some chipmakers.

Energy stocks fell 0.6%, weighed down ​by Neste after the biofuel maker ‌and oil refiner reported second-quarter core profit slightly below expectations.

Brent crude prices remained above $100 a barrel as attacks ⁠by Iran-aligned Houthis on Saudi tankers in the Red Sea escalated concerns about disruptions to ⁠oil supplies. [O/R]

Meanwhile, ‌the U.S. administration imposed ⁠new tariffs of 10% and ​12.5% ‌on goods from 60 trading ​partners, over ⁠allegations of lax enforcement of forced labour bans, just as a temporary 10% global tariff expired.

(Reporting by Tharuniyaa Lakshmi and Purvi Agarwal in Bengaluru; Editing by ​Sonia Cheema)