European shares ​rise as consumer stocks gain

The pan-European STOXX 600 index added 0.3% to 646.75 points

European shares ​rose for a third day on Tuesday, led by consumer-focused stocks after strong results from Unilever, ‌which helped offset declines in heavyweight banks and technology shares.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index added 0.3% to 646.75 points by 0845 GMT.

Investor sentiment towards consumer-facing stocks, both staples and discretionary, improved following robust results.

Unilever climbed 6%, set for its biggest one-day gain in two ​years, after the consumer goods group beat second-quarter sales growth estimates, while Mercedes-Benz rose 3% after the ​German automaker reported a 22% rise in quarterly operating profit.

Luxury stocks got a boost after LVMH ⁠reported a 3% rise in quarterly sales. Though its shares declined 1.1%, the broader European luxury index edged ​up 0.6%.

Nicholas Brooks, head of economic and investment research at London-based ICG said that the underlying fundamentals of economies are still pretty strong, broader earnings growth has actually been better than expected.

Unless we see a big move upwards in central bank policy rates because of higher energy prices, it’s still a constructive environment for equities, Brooks said.

On the flip ​side, technology stocks slid 0.1%, extending losses after the sector declined almost 2% in the previous session after the ​Information reported China is manufacturing domestically developed immersion deep-ultraviolet lithography machines, a technology long dominated by Dutch equipment maker ASML.

Shares in ‌ASML were ⁠down 1.1% in early European trading, while another steep fall in Asian chip stocks dented sentiment.

Among other movers, Barclays shed 4.2% despite reporting a 17% rise in first-half profit that beat analysts’ expectations.

Italy’s Saipem slipped 7.6% after the oil and gas ​contractor lowered its expectations for 2026 core earnings to reflect costs linked to the Middle ​East crisis.

Energy stocks ⁠were the biggest percentage decliners, down 1.1%, as oil prices extended their slide on optimism around another Iran-U.S. deal after the two warring countries stopped their attacks.