Market Wrap: Stocks and metals dip as Trump-Xi summit fails to break Iran deadlock 📉 (15.05.2026)

📉 Markets & Companies:

• Market Sentiment: Bearishness is deepening as investors prioritize "pricing in the pain" of an enduring US-Iran deadlock over strong earnings data. Rising energy costs and surging inflation readings have rekindled recession fears, particularly across manufacturing-heavy hubs like Germany and France, where risk appetite has evaporated despite signs of corporate resilience.

• Indices: Futures on European indices are trading in deep red. Biggest losses are recorded by a Polish WIG20 (W20: -1.8%), Italian FTSE MIB (ITA40: -1.6%) and French CAC40 (FRA40: -1.6%). Contract for a broad Euro Stoxx 50 (EU50) and UK’s FTSE 100 (UK100) are both down approx. 1.4%. The Swiss market shows some resilience (SUI20: -0.2%) due to a high concentration of defensive Health Care and Consumer Goods companies.

• Key Stocks: European indices were led lower by a 4.3% plunge in materials and a sharp tech sell-off, with semiconductor firms like ASML and Aixtron falling up to 4.6% and 7.3% respectively. While major banks and luxury giants like LVMH retreated, Italian chip-maker Technoprobe provided a rare bright spot, soaring 35% following a significant upgrade to its 2026 outlook.

• HSBC has made little progress on its $4 billion plan to invest in private credit funds. The bank faces a $400 million hit from a soured loan linked to a collapsed UK firm. Despite updating its risk appetite amid market volatility, HSBC remains committed to competing in the asset class.

• Delivery Hero shares surged 40% following CEO Niklas Östberg’s resignation and the entry of an activist investor. Markets anticipate a group "dismantlement," specifically a potential sale of its core South Korean business. Such disposals are viewed as essential to addressing €2.25 billion in looming bond maturities and unlocking shareholder value.

• BP is weighing the sale of its Egyptian natural gas assets as new CEO Meg O'Neill moves to cut debt and refocus on high-profit projects. Although the major has invested $35 billion in Egypt over six decades, its local production has plummeted nearly 60% since 2023, prompting a strategic re-evaluation of its Mediterranean holdings.

• FX: The US dollar index (USDIDX) extends gains for the 5th consecutive session, jumping sharply by 0.2% on no real progress on the Iran war after the Trump-Xi summit. Risk currencies are down the most (AUDUSD: -0.8%, NZDUSD: -0.7%). Japanese yen is the least volatile (USDJPY: +0.07%).  EURUSD is down 0.2% to 1.165. 

• Precious metals are correcting down sharply due to the US dollar strength. GOLD dips 2% to 4560 USD/oz, while SILVER plummets 5.7% to approx. 79 USD/oz.

• Cryptocurrencies are also experiencing a broad sell-off, with both major and minor tokens recording significant losses. Bitcoin is down 0,8% to 80 800 USD, while Ethereum drops 1.5% to 2265 USD.

🌍 Economics & Politics:

• New Highway for Oil: The UAE is fast-tracking a second West-East oil pipeline to bypass the Strait of Hormuz. This critical infrastructure project aims to secure oil exports amid the ongoing Iranian blockade, allowing the UAE to transport crude directly to the Gulf of Oman and circumvent the volatile shipping corridor.

• Diplomatic Stalemate: President Trump and Xi Jinping concluded their Beijing summit emphasizing a mutual desire to end the Iran war and keep the Strait of Hormuz open, though China resists shouldering responsibility. Trump asserted the US no longer needs the Strait, while Beijing prioritizes "strategic stability" and trade over intervention.

• Energy Pivot: Treasury’s Bessent expects China to use its Middle East oil leverage and reliance to pressure Tehran "behind-the-scenes." Simultaneously, Beijing is pivoting toward "stable" US LNG, inadvertently tightening bilateral ties with the US as nations flee Middle Eastern volatility.

• Trump’s Fed Appointee Resigns: Fed Governor Stephen Miran resigned, endorsing incoming Chair Kevin Warsh’s "narrow mandate" and aggressive balance sheet reduction. A consistent dissenter, Miran pushed for earlier rate cuts and forward-looking policy, citing deregulation and immigration as key disinflationary forces the Fed must better incorporate into its monetary models.

• New Fed Chair: Kevin Warsh succeeds Jerome Powell as Fed Chair during a volatile transition. With inflation at 3.8% and 30-year yields topping 5%, Warsh inherits a restrictive inflation climate fueled by geopolitical shocks. He must restore price stability while navigating massive public debt and the challenging legacy of the Powell era.