Investing.com - European stock markets climbed higher Monday, boosted by strong gains from energy giant BP (NYSE:BP) even after a new tariffs announcement from US President Donald Trump.
The DAX index in Germany closed 0.7% higher, the CAC 40 in France rose 0.4% and the FTSE 100 in the UK gained 0.8%.
More US tariffs
On Sunday, President Trump said he would introduce new 25% tariffs on all US imports of steel and aluminium on top of existing metals duties, with a promise of yet more reciprocal tariffs on Tuesday or Wednesday.
The earlier imposition of a 10% tariff on Chinese imports by the US has led to retaliatory measures from China, including tariffs on US oil, liquefied natural gas, and coal, which came into play earlier Monday.
Additionally, the European Union is weighing its response, with German Chancellor Scholz stating that the EU was ready to respond to levies in the near future.
Markets were cheered last week by Trump's decision to suspend tariffs on Mexico and Canada hours before they were due to come into force, but the latest moves have raised investor uncertainty and potential volatility.
Strong start to the year in Europe
Despite this uncertainty, European stocks have had a strong start to the year, with the pan-Europe benchmark STOXX 600 index recording its best performance since 2015 against Wall Street over the first six weeks of 2025.
These gains have been powered by cheap valuations, earnings growth, hopes for more monetary easing by the European Central Bank, as well as Germany potentially loosening fiscal policy.
European earnings growth is forecast at 7.9% in 2025, from 1% last year and after a 3.9% fall in 2023.
Elliott takes BP stake
There is a relatively quiet start to the week in terms of corporate earnings.
BP (LON:BP) stock soared over 7% after Reuters reported over the weekend that activist investor Elliott Investment Management has acquired a stake in the energy giant, although the size of the stake was not disclosed.
Elliott is pushing for changes at the British oil major to boost shareholder value, Bloomberg said in a separate report on Saturday, describing the investment as “significant.”
The activist investor believes BP is undervalued, with a market capitalization of approximately £69 billion ($85.62 billion), compared to Shell’s £161 billion valuation.
Nokia (HE:NOKIA) stock rose 2% after the Finnish telecoms giant said Pekka Lundmark would step down as CEO, and that it has appointed Justin Hotard to take over his role.
Hotard, who will take up the position on April 1, is currently the executive vice president and general manager of Data Center & AI Group at Intel (NASDAQ:INTC), according to the chipmaker's website.
Crude bounces after weekly losses
Oil prices rose Monday, bouncing after three consecutive weekly declines despite President Trump's new tariff announcement on all steel and aluminum imports.
By 11:55 ET, the US crude futures (WTI) gained 1.9% to $72.37 a barrel, while the Brent contract rose 1.7% to $75.94 a barrel.
Both contracts lost nearly 2% last week after a sharp jump in US crude stockpiles, as well as concerns about a global trade war.
The resulting uncertainty and potential tightening of global supply are contributing to the current rise in oil prices.