Europe open: Shares flat as UBS disappoints

European stocks were flat at the open on Tuesday with a fall in UBS shares tempering sentiment and offsetting a rise in commodity stocks.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 index was flat in early deals, with the UK’s mining-heavy FTSE 100 outperforming, gaining 0.49% as prices of crude, base metals and iron ore rose.

“It is a mixed session so far in Europe with the CAC under pressure while the FTSE MIB is trading in the green,” said Interactive Investor head of investment Victoria Scholar.

“Earnings are very much front and centre with US results from Alphabet and Microsoft after the bell this evening. The US retail giant and bellwether Walmart issued a profit warning last night sending shares down 10% along with Amazon and Target after-hours.”

“A slew of European earnings comes out this week and according to Goldman Sachs, around 34% of European companies have missed consensus by at least 5% in the second quarter so far, the highest percentage since the sovereign debt crisis in 2010.”

Unilever was up after the consumer goods giant raised its full-year sales forecast.

Shares in Swiss chocolate maker Lindt & Spruengli rose after an upbeat outlook. Swiss bank UBS fell after posting a smaller-than-expected rise in second-quarter net profit.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti at Sharecast.com