Europe midday: Shares pare gains as Israel says it won't leave Lebanon

(Sharecast News) - European shares pared gains by midday as Israel said its troops would remain in Lebanon, placing the US-Iran peace deal in doubt.

The pan-regional Stoxx 600 had hit an intra-day high on news of the agreement but gave up some gains to be up 0.66% at 637 by 1154 BST.

Brent crude fell 4.98% to $83 a barrel, with West Texas Intermediate down 5% to $80, although Brent is still well above its pre-war price of $72.48

The US and Iran agreed on a deal to end their four-month war to an end, with both sides declaring the immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon, said Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday.

Pakistan has served as a mediator between the two countries. "The official signing ceremony will be on Friday, 19 June in Switzerland," Sharif said.

US President Donald Trump, who started the war in February in conjunction with Israel, confirmed that a deal had been reached.

"I hereby fully authorize the toll free opening of the Strait of Hormuz, and, simultaneously herewith, authorize the immediate removal of the United States Naval blockade," Trump wrote in a social media post.

Two far-right members of the Israeli Cabinet, known for their extreme views on Palestine and Iran, said they were not bound by the deal, while the country's defence minister Israel Katz was quoted as saying "the IDF will remain in the security zones in Lebanon, Syria and Gaza - indefinitely - to defend the border and Israeli communities against jihadist elements."

Israel has annexed large parts of Lebanon in response to missile attacks from the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia. Tehran has insisted that Lebanon must be included in any peace deal.

The reopening of the strait, through which 2% of the world's oil normally flows, would ease pressure on central banks to raise interest rates as inflationary threats from rising oil prices diminish.

However, analysts noted that clearing the hundreds of tankers currently trapped in the strait, removing mines and restoring regular oil shipping and production damaged by Iranian missiles could take weeks.

"The focus now shifts towards understanding what normalisation of logistics could realistically look like, and how quickly shipping volumes can return to pre-conflict levels of 120 to 140 commercial vessels transiting eastbound and westbound each day," said Chris Weston at IG.

In equity news oil majors such as Equinor and Eni slumped, along with arms manufacturers on the prospect of peace, while travel stocks Tui and Ryanair surged.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com