Ibex 35, the leading barometer of the Spanish market, opened Tuesday with a modest rise of 0.16% to 9,983.8 points amid a day without major macroeconomic catalysts on the calendar. The session reflected a quiet start for investors, with attention turning to earnings announcements and strategic moves across the financial sector.
On the international corporate front, investors were watching forthcoming results from Netflix and Johnson & Johnson, while Spain’s earnings season was expected to pick up soon. Bankinter was positioned to signal the start of the Spain’s Ibex 35 earnings season, setting the tone for the country’s top index as it sought to chart a direction for the coming sessions.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Economy, Trade and Enterprise, Carlos Body, began targeted engagements with the heads of several leading Spanish banks. These conversations underscored a focus on industry health, capital adequacy, and the broader financial landscape as Spain monitors economic resilience in a global context.
In this setting, a tour organized by CaixaBank gathered prominent figures including José Ignacio Goirigolzarri, the CaixaBank chairman, alongside leaders from KutxaBank, Antón Arriola, and Carlos Torres of BBVA. The journey continued on Wednesday with visits to Banco Sabadell led by Josep Oliu, KPMG president Juan José Cano, and Manuel Azuaga, head of Unicaja Banco, highlighting ongoing collaboration efforts among major financial institutions and auditors to assess market conditions and governance practices.
Among the early movers on the Ibex 35, Grifols led gains at roughly 1.25%, followed by Fluidra at 1.1%, Cellnex at 1.02%, ArcelorMittal at 0.93%, and IAG near 1.93% higher. On the negative side, Merlin Properties slipped about 0.32%, Colonial shed 0.26%, and Iberdrola dipped roughly 0.22% as trading began.
European stock markets opened with a positive tone as well, with London advancing 0.38%, Frankfurt 0.31%, Paris 0.30%, and Milan 0.26%, signaling a broadly supportive regional environment for equities during the session.
In commodity news, the Brent crude oil benchmark, which serves as a key European reference, rose by about 0.16% to around 80.19 dollars per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate gained roughly 0.21% to 74.92 dollars per barrel, reinforcing a tentative upward drift in energy markets that often influences broader market sentiment.
Currency markets showed the euro gaining against the dollar, reaching about 1.0907 per euro, while in the bond market the Spanish 10-year note yielded around 3.229%, reflecting shifting risk sentiment and Spain’s sovereign borrowing costs in a global context.