European stocks end lower amid Trump's Strait of Hormuz remarks

European stocks closed sharply lower Tuesday as investors returned from the Easter break to mounting geopolitical anxiety after US President Donald Trump escalated his threats against Iran.

The pan-European Stoxx Europe 600 index fell 1.01% to finish at 590.59 points.

Germany’s DAX 40 slid 1.06% to 22,921.59 points, and the UK’s FTSE 100 declined 0.84% to 10,348.79.

Italy’s FTSE MIB 30 lost 0.49% to settle at 45,411.79 and France’s CAC 40 dropped 0.67% to 7,908.74.

The euro/dollar pair rose 0.23% at 1.1569 as of 1715GMT.

Markets ended their first session after the holiday break in negative territory as attention shifted firmly to the Middle East, where investors are closely tracking the risk of further escalation in the conflict involving the US, Israel and Iran, and the potential fallout for global energy supplies.

Trump said an attack could come if no agreement is reached by 8 pm ET Tuesday (0000GMT Wednesday) to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, while also posting on social media that “a whole civilization will die tonight.”

On the data front, the Eurozone’s composite Purchasing Managers’ Index fell to 50.7 in March, its lowest in nine months, pointing to only marginal growth in private-sector activity as cost pressures intensified. In the UK, the services PMI dropped to 50.5, the weakest reading in 11 months.

Investor sentiment across the euro area also deteriorated sharply. The Sentix Eurozone General Investor Confidence Index fell 16.1 points in April to minus 19.2, its lowest since April 2025, reflecting renewed recession fears as the Middle East conflict and the accompanying energy shock weigh on the regional outlook.