European stocks may follow their Asian peers higher on Tuesday, as investors set aside geopolitical concerns for the time being to focus on earnings and signs of improvement in the world's largest economy.
U.S. stocks closed well off their intraday lows overnight and Ukraine's pro-Russian rebels agreed to hand over bodies of victims of last week's plane crash to the Netherlands, perking up investor sentiment across the Asia-Pacific region.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng is rallying 1.3 percent after falling in the past three sessions, while Japan's Nikkei index gained 0.9 percent on a weaker yen. China's Shanghai Composite is adding a percent, while gains elsewhere remain muted on lingering concerns about crises in Ukraine and Gaza which pressured short-term U.S. Treasury yields and the dollar.
U.S. President Barack Obama reiterated his support for Israel's right to defend itself from attacks by Hamas but expressed serious concerns about the rising number of Palestinian civilian deaths. The president said he has dispatched Secretary of State John Kerry to the Middle East in an effort to bring about a cease-fire.
On developments in Ukraine, Obama claimed that pro-Russian separatists in the region are preventing international investigators from gaining full access to the wreckage and removing bodies from the crash site. He noted that Russia has extraordinary influence over the separatists.
Meanwhile, the United Nations Security Council has called for an international investigation into last week's downing of the Malaysian flight and demanded that armed groups allow unfettered access to the crash site and ensure that its integrity is maintained.
The U.S. economic calendar remains light today, with investors eying reports on consumer price inflation and existing home sales for further signs the economy is stabilizing after a harsh winter. On the earnings front, Coca-Cola, DuPont and McDonald's are among the prominent companies that will publish their quarterly results before the opening bell.
Closer home, reports on Swiss trade balance and U.K. public sector net borrowing for June are slated for release in the European session. The group of European foreign ministers will meet in Brussels later in the day to discuss sanctions against Russia.
The International Monetary Fund lifted its outlook for the German economy and urged authorities to boost public investment on infrastructure, while adhering to the European fiscal rules. The largest Eurozone is now expected to grow 1.9 percent this year, up from the prior estimate of 1.7 percent.
In corporate news, Swiss lender Credit Suisse Group reported a loss for the second quarter, compared to a profit last year, hit by a hefty charge related to assistance given to certain U.S. taxpayers.
Norwegian aluminum producer Norsk Hydro ASA reported second-quarter net income of 269 million Norwegian kroner, compared to a loss of 665 million kroner last year.
Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A., Spain's second-largest bank, said that it has agreed to acquire bailed-out Spanish bank Catalunya Banc S.A. for 1.187 billion euros, or $1.61 billion.
The major European markets fell for a third day on Monday, with escalating violence in Gaza and growing tensions between Russia and the West over the downing of Malaysian Airlines passenger jet weighing on the markets. The German DAX dropped 1.1 percent, France's CAC 40 slid 0.7 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 eased 0.3 percent.
U.S. stocks ended slightly lower overnight as investors digested mixed quarterly results and remained cautious about ongoing developments in Ukraine and Gaza. The major averages fell between 0.2 percent and 0.3 percent after Friday's sharp gains.
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December 19, 2025 15:10 ET U.S. inflation data and interest rate decisions by major central banks were the highlights of this busy week for economics news flow. Employment data and survey results on the housing markets also gained attention in the U.S. In Europe, the European Central Bank and Bank of England announced their policy decisions and macroeconomic projections.