Europe open: Shares slump as Iran war stokes stagflation, rate hike fears

(Sharecast News) - European share opened sharply lower again on Friday as oil prices remained above $100, sparking fears of stagflation and interest rate rises.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 index was down 1% to 592.6 at 8030 GMT with all major regional bourses lower. Germany's Dax fell 1%, France's CAC 40 1.12%, Britain's FTSE 0.77%, Italy's MIB 0.91% and Spain's Ibex 1.35%

Brent crude prices remain above the $100 level, despite an agreement by more than 30 countries to release a combined 400 million barrel from emergency reserves. The international benchmark was up 0.93% at $101.4 a barrel.

US West Texas Intermediate gained 0.86% to $96.55 as the US Energy Department said it would release 172 million barrels from its strategic petroleum reserve.

Meanwhile, the Trump administration, spooked by the rising cost of petrol at the pump in an election year, issued a 30-day waiver for countries to buy sanctioned Russian oil and petroleum products currently stranded at sea.

Sentiment was also hit by news that the UK economy stagnated in January, even before the energy shock caused by the war on Iran, with betting swinging in favour of an interest rate rise by the Bank of England. Economists had forecast growth of 0.2%.

Meanwhile, money markets are fully pricing in a rate hike by the European Central Bank by July and a 70% chance of a second increase by December compared with a 40% chance to cut rates again before the end of the year.

"Investors are starting to question the assumption that the conflict in Iran will be a short-lived disruption, as increasingly heated rhetoric heightens the risk of sustained pressure on energy prices," said Hargreaves Lansdown analyst Matt Britzman.

"Energy markets are looking relatively calm this morning, but with oil prices still hovering around the $100 mark and weekly gains of roughly 8%, there's been little real letup. Traders are continuing to weigh the fallout from the conflict with Iran, with no signs of deescalation and production disruptions keeping supply concerns front of mind. With the Strait of Hormuz essentially closed, any measures to relieve price pressure are likely to be little more than a temporary stopgap."

In equity news, shares in BE Semiconductor Industries shares hit an all-time high on a report that the Dutch chip-packaging company had received takeover approaches company had received takeover interest from Lam Research and Applied Materials.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com