European shares dipped at the open on Monday as fresh U.S.-Iran military strikes pushed oil prices and bond yields higher, while the STOXX 600 remained on track for a fifth straight monthly gain.
The pan-European STOXX 600 was flat at about 655 points by 0712 GMT after a weaker start, with London markets closed for a bank holiday.
Energy stocks rose 0.6%, tracking a more than 2% jump in Brent crude , which traded around $90.70 a barrel. [O/R]
U.S. forces struck two missile launchers on Iran’s Larak Island in the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, the first known U.S. military action against Iran since late July, prompting Tehran to launch attacks on two U.S. air bases in Jordan, Iranian media reported.
Germany’s DAX dropped 0.5% ahead of inflation data from the euro zone’s largest economy that could offer on the European Central Bank’s rate path. Euro zone inflation figures and U.S. payrolls data will be in focus later this week.
Bakkafrost dropped 7.1%, among the top decliners on the STOXX 600 after the Faroe Islands salmon farmer reported second-quarter results.
(Reporting by Medha Singh and Sudeshna Ghoshal in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee)
