Though currently on holiday, the STOXX Europe 600 closed the previous week up 3.92%. European regulators (ESMA) warned of “stretched equity valuations,” yet investor sentiment remains buoyed by the narrowing of sovereign bond spreads and a surge in ETF inflows as retail capital shifts toward passive, diversified strategies

Markets are pricing in a potential breakthrough as the U.S. and regional mediators discuss a 45-day truce. Crude oil prices, which hit 2008-level highs last week, have begun to reverse gains as vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz shows signs of stabilization despite aggressive rhetoric

Recent data shows a “Goldilocks” scenario for the Fed: robust job gains paired with cooling pay pressures (3.5% YoY). Despite a slip in the Services PMI to 49.8, investors are rotating back into growth-focused tech, betting that the interest rate hiking cycle has finally hit its absolute ceiling