European Stocks Close Lower in Tuesday Trading Amid US Strikes on Iran, Ahead of US Elections

12:02 PM EST, 11/03/2026 (MT Newswires) -- The European stock markets closed lower in Tuesday trading amid reports that the US launched military strikes on Iranian military assets on Qeshm Island, and as investors await US mid-term election results. The Stoxx Europe lost 0.5%, Germany's DAX declined 0.3%, the FTSE 100 rose 1.1%, France's CAC edged 0.2% lower, and the Swiss Market Index decreased 0.4%. In corporate news, Barclays will make early settlement offers to some of its motor finance customers after the suspension of a 9 billion UK pound ($12.08 billion) redress program over court challenges, the company said Tuesday. The UK's Financial Conduct Authority imposed the plan to return money to consumers over improper automotive lending practices only to have parts of the arrangement challenged in court by banks and motor vehicle companies. The settlement offers will be calculated using the FCA's methodology, the regulator said. Shares of the British bank lost 1.1% in London. Shell Australia agreed to sell its roughly 17% non-operated interest in the North West Shelf project in Western Australia to XRG subsidiaries for a base consideration of $1.45 billion, plus a milestone-based payment, Shell said Tuesday. The deal for the liquefied natural gas and domestic gas development project includes the company's associated upstream, pipeline and midstream interests. Closing is expected to occur in 2027, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary conditions, Shell said. Shares of the British oil and gas major declined 1.4% in London. Ferrari reported Q3 earnings Tuesday of 2.44 euros ($2.73) per diluted share, up from 2.14 euros a year earlier. Analysts polled by FactSet expected 2.36 euros. Revenue for the quarter ended Sept. 30 was 1.90 billion euros, up from 1.77 billion euros a year earlier. Analysts expected 1.90 billion euros. The company said it now expects 2026 adjusted diluted EPS of at least 9.85 euros, up from a prior forecast of at least 9.68 euros. Analysts polled by FactSet expect 9.83 euros. Ferrari also expects net revenue for the year of about 7.65 billion euros, up from a prior forecast of about 7.60 billion euros. Analysts polled by FactSet expect 7.64 billion euros. Shares of the Italian luxury sportscar maker advanced 4.5% in Milan. BioNTech reported Q3 adjusted earnings Tuesday of 1.76 euros ($1.97) per diluted share, down from 3.11 euros a year earlier. Four analysts polled by FactSet expected 0.49 euros. Revenue for the quarter ended Sept. 30 was 1.29 billion euros, compared with 1.52 billion euros a year earlier. Analysts expected 1.03 billion euros. The company raised its 2026 revenue outlook to between 1.70 billion euros and $1.90 billion euros, from 1.60 billion euros to 1.90 billion euros previously. Analysts expect 1.80 billion euros. Shares of the German biotech firm increased 2% in Frankfurt. Unilever plans to deliver productivity savings of 1 billion euros ($1.12 billion) by the end of 2029 by addressing costs arising from its March agreement to combine its Foods business with McCormick and savings from organizational simplification, process redesign and technology projects, according to a filing Tuesday with the London Stock Exchange. The company also expects to deliver in-line performance with its medium-term algorithm in 2027, according to the document, which was filed ahead of Unilever's investor event on Wednesday. Shares of the consumer goods giant were off 1.1% in London. Royal Philips reported Q3 net income from continuing operations Tuesday of 0.03 euros ($0.03) per diluted share, down from 0.19 euros a year earlier. Sales for the quarter ended Sept. 30 were 4.39 billion euros, up from 4.30 billion euros a year earlier. Analysts expected 4.47 billion euros. For 2026, the Dutch electronics and medical devices maker continues to expect sales growth of 3% to 4.5%. Shares of the company climbed 4.8% in Amsterdam. TotalEnergies has agreed to buy up to 1.6 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas from Adnoc Gas under a five-year supply deal, Adnoc said Tuesday. A new global LNG platform will combine marketing from Adnoc Gas and XRG with Adnoc Trading, targeting 47 million tonnes of marketable LNG a year beyond 2030, the company said. Additionally, TotalEnergies' unit TotalEnergies Marketing USA said Tuesday it signed a distribution agreement with SSF Imported Auto Parts to expand the availability of ELF passenger car motor oils in the US. SSF will distribute the products through its 13 distribution centers nationwide, the company said. Shares of the French oil and gas company dropped 1.1% in Paris. Novartis, through its Novartis Pharma AG unit, has terminated its August 2025 collaboration and license agreement with BioArctic to explore a potential treatment combining BioArctic's BrainTransporter technology with an undisclosed Novartis antibody, BioArctic said Monday. BioArctic will retain the full $30 million upfront payment and recognize the remaining unrecognized portion as revenue in 2026, it added. Shares of the Swiss pharmaceutical company were little changed in Zurich.