European stocks pull back as busy week begins; precious metals keep sliding

European stocks moved lower on Monday as a selloff in precious metals rattled investor sentiment at the start of a week packed with corporate earnings, central bank meetings, and key economic data.

By 03:05 ET (08:05 GMT), Germany’s DAX was down 0.4%, France’s CAC 40 slipped 0.5%, and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 fell 0.6%.

Investor sentiment pressured by further declines in precious metals

Market sentiment was sharply dented on Monday as gold and silver extended their selloff, deepening losses from Friday’s rout. The nomination of Kevin Warsh as the next Federal Reserve chair sparked a strong rebound in the U.S. dollar, triggering widespread profit-taking and bringing an end to a rally that had pushed precious metals to record highs only days earlier.

Spot gold slid just under 6% to $4,597 per ounce on Monday, after plunging nearly 10% on Friday—its steepest single-day decline since 1983.

Silver, which had surged alongside gold on safe-haven demand and speculative inflows, also remained under heavy pressure following last Friday’s 30% collapse, marking its worst session since March 1980.

Adding to investor unease, CME announced increases to margin requirements on several metals contracts effective from Monday’s market close, suggesting some traders may be struggling to meet margin calls and could be forced to sell liquid assets.

Intesa Sanpaolo posts strong 2025 profit

Shifting back to the corporate sector, another heavy week of quarterly earnings is ahead, with roughly 30% of the EuroSTOXX index’s market capitalization due to report results.

Earlier on Monday, Intesa Sanpaolo (BIT: ISP) posted a 7.6% increase in 2025 net profit to €9.3 billion and unveiled plans to return €8.8 billion to shareholders through dividends and share buybacks, reinforcing its status as one of Europe’s most profitable banks.

Meanwhile, Swiss lender Julius Baer (SIX: BAER) reported 2025 net profit of CHF 764 million, down 25% from the previous year but slightly above market expectations of CHF 679 million.

In the U.S., attention this week will focus on technology heavyweights Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOGL) and Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN), especially as sentiment toward AI-related stocks has weakened after Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) flagged rising costs from heavy AI investment, raising doubts over near-term returns.

German retail sales edge up

Data released earlier in the session showed that German retail sales increased by 0.1% in December from the previous month, improving from a 0.5% decline in November.

Manufacturing activity figures for January are due later in the session for the eurozone and are expected to show a modest improvement, although remaining in contraction territory.

Meanwhile, data released on Saturday indicated that China’s official manufacturing PMI fell further below the 50 threshold in January, signaling continued contraction in factory activity and underscoring ongoing weakness in domestic demand.

Both the European Central Bank and the Bank of England are set to hold policy meetings this week, with each widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged.

Oil falls as geopolitical risk premium fades

Oil prices dropped sharply on Monday as fears of a potential U.S. strike on Iran eased after President Donald Trump said the Middle Eastern oil producer was “seriously talking” with Washington.

Brent crude futures fell 4.8% to $65.97 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude slid 5% to $61.91 a barrel.

Oil prices had surged last week as markets priced in a higher risk of supply disruptions from the region, following repeated threats by Trump toward Iran over its nuclear program and ongoing domestic unrest.

Those geopolitical risks appeared to recede after Trump’s comments over the weekend.

Meanwhile, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, known collectively as OPEC+, left output levels unchanged at their weekend meeting, in line with expectations.

Sources: Peter Nurse