European markets slightly higher ahead of Trump’s inauguration

The euro and sterling were 1.3% and 1.04% higher against the U.S. dollar respectively at 3:30 p.m. in London after reports suggested incoming U.S. President Donald Trump would not enact trade tariffs on his first day in office.

The Wall Street Journal and Reuters both reported that Trump would on Monday issue a trade memo ordering an evaluation of the U.S.’s trade relationships with China, Canada and Mexico — its three biggest trading partners and those Trump has threatened with the highest duties — but stop short of announcing new tariffs.

Countries around the world are closely monitoring for potential tariff announcements, which could have major imacts on Federal Reserve policy, global trade flows and economic growth. In December, Trump threatened the European Union with tariffs unless it reduced its trade deficit with the U.S. through oil and gas purchases.

Zalando shares were down 1.7% at 1:09 p.m. London time after the German online retailer said it had launched a public tender offer for rival About You.

The offer price of 6.50 euros ($6.71) per share represents a 12% premium above the median analyst target price for About You, Zalando said on Monday. The acceptance period for the offer begins on Monday and is expected to end on Feb. 17.

Details of the offer were published following approval from the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin).

Zalando first announced its plan to acquire About You last month.

Shares of About You were around 1.4% higher on Monday.

— Chloe Taylor

In a statement released ahead of Donald Trump’s inauguration on Monday, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer expressed optimism about Britain’s relationship with America, citing the president-elect’s “longstanding affection and historical ties to the United Kingdom.”

“Since our first meeting in September, the President and I have spoken about the need to deepen and invest in the transatlantic relationship,” he said. “The special relationship between the United Kingdom and United States will continue to flourish for years to come.”

— Chloe Taylor

HSBC shares are off to a strong start this week and are currently trading at a 17-year high on an intraday basis.

The lender’s London-listed A-shares rose to £8.286 after the stock market opened, its highest level since Nov. 2 2007.

And it’s not the only bank notching highs this morning.

The U.K.’s FTSE 100 and Germany’s DAX indexes were marginally higher on Monday morning, after hitting an all-time high on Friday.

The FTSE was 0.08% higher, the DAX was 0.04% in the green and the French CAC was up 0.1%.

Spain’s Ibex was also slightly higher, but Italy’s FTSE Mib fell by 0.36% by 10:16 a.m. London time.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 slipped 0.04%.

— Ganesh Rao

Judges Scientific, a conglomerate holding several U.K.-based scientific instruments manufacturers, reported an annual decline in revenue in 2024 in a trading update out Monday.

The company said organic revenues fell 5.8% in 2024 compared to the previous year.

Founded in 2002 by CEO David Cicurel, the business now has a large retail investor following after raising its dividend payout annually over the past 17 years.

“The operational leverage in the business means that the small decline in organic revenue has a large impact on profitability,” the firm said in a stock market filing. It’s expected to unveil its full-year results on March 19.

“Other headwinds affected our businesses to varying degrees, including a large reduction in orders from China, together with a general weakness in order intake and some customers delaying orders and deliveries,” the company added.

Analysts at investment bank Jefferies had downgraded the stock ahead of the filing to “Hold” saying they see “clear short-term vulnerability due to the difficult trading backdrop”.

“On a longer-term view, we continue to see Judges as one of the highest-quality names in our coverage – the unique operating model and strategy has resulted in sector leadership on a range of financial metrics, which should continue as end markets recover – and there is plenty of scope for an ongoing stream of attractive M&A,” the Jefferies analysts added.

— Ganesh Rao

South Korea’s finance ministry pledged to provide a record  360 trillion won ($247.74 billion) of financial support to its exporters as Donald Trump is set to begin his second term as president.

The ministry also announced it will increase its exchange rate insurance support to 1.4 trillion won this year, up from 1.2 trillion won in 2024.

The statement added that semiconductors and rechargeable batteries were among sectors more at risk from potential new U.S. policies.

— Lee Ying Shan

China left its benchmark lending rates unchanged Monday, as Beijing contends with a weakening yuan while awaiting policy clues from the incoming Donald Trump administration.

The People’s Bank of China held the 1-year loan prime rate at 3.1%, and the 5-year LPR at 3.6%, according to the PBOC statement.

The 1-year LPR determines rates on corporate and most household loans, while the 5-year LPR acts as a reference for mortgage loans.

Read the full story here.

— Anniek Bao

European markets are expected to open in mixed territory on Monday.

The U.K.’s FTSE 100 index is expected to open 12 points lower at 8,493, Germany’s DAX up 3 points at 20,897, France’s CAC up 6 points at 7,720 and Italy’s FTSE MIB up 21 points at 36,351, according to data from IG.

There are no major earnings or data releases Monday.

— Holly Ellyatt