European stocks head for mixed open as investors eye tariff impact on earnings

Danish brewer Carlsberg on Tuesday reported a "soft" start to the year, as weak consumer spending and the loss of its San Miguel license weighed on demand.

First-quarter revenue came in at 20.1 billion Danish kroner ($3.06 billion) versus the 19.5 billion Danish kroner estimated by analysts in an LSEG poll. Sales were driven primarily by the group's premium beer brands — excluding San Miguel — alcohol-free brews and Beyond Beer products.

Carlsberg said the loss last year of its exclusive license partnership to produce and distribute San Miguel had negatively impacted first-quarter sales.

"It was a soft start to the year, impacted by the loss of the San Miguel brand and continued subdued consumer spending in an environment with increased macroeconomic volatility," CEO Jacob Aarup-Andersen said in a statement.

The brewer nevertheless maintained its 2025 full-year guidance for operating profit growth of 1% to 5%, and said that its acquisition of British soft drinks maker Britvic was expected to boost operating profit to the tune of £250 million ($335 million) this year.

— Karen Gilchrist

British oil giant BP posted slightly weaker-than-expected first-quarter net profit, following a recent strategic reset and a slump in crude prices.

The beleaguered oil and gas major posted underlying replacement cost profit, used as a proxy for net profit, of $1.38 billion for the first three months of the year. That missed analyst expectations of $1.6 billion, according to an LSEG-compiled consensus.

BP's net profit had hit $2.7 billion a year earlier and $1.2 billion in the final three months of 2024.

Read the full story here.

— Sam Meredith

Germany's Adidas announced a 155% jump in first-quarter profit, as the sportswear giant confirmed its U.S. prices would increase as a result of tariffs.

Net income from continuing operations rose to 436 million euros ($496.5 million), above the 383 million euros forecast in an LSEG-compiled consensus, as net sales climbed 12.7% to 6.15 billion euros.

"In a 'normal world' with this strong quarter, the strong order book and in general a very positive attitude towards adidas, we would have increased our outlook for the full year both for revenues and operating profit. The uncertainty regarding the US tariffs has currently put a stop to this," the company said in a statement.

Adidas share price.

It added that it was "somewhat exposed" to "currently very high tariffs" on China, but was hit hardest by general increases in U.S. tariffs from all other countries because it cannot currently produce almost any products in the U.S.

"These higher tariffs will eventually cause higher costs for all our products for the US market. Given the uncertainty around the negotiations between the US and the different exporting countries, we do not know what the final tariffs will be."

The company reaffirmed its full-year outlook but said there were "uncertainties that could put negative pressure on this later in the year."

— Jenni Reid

Swedish-based automaker Volvo Cars announced cost-cutting plans of 18 billion Swedish krona ($1.87 billion) as its operating profit fell sharply in the first three months of the year.

Volvo Cars, which is owned by China's Geely Holding, reported first-quarter operating profit of 1.9 billion krona, down from 4.7 billion krona in the same period last year.

Volvo Cars.

The company said the results reflect a drop in wholesales as part of a planned inventory reduction during the final three months of 2024, adverse currency effects and broader automotive industry turbulence.

It also said it was no longer providing financial guidance for both 2025 and 2026.

Read the full story here.

— Sam Meredith

Swiss pharmaceutical firm Novartis reported better-than-expected first-quarter sales and raised its full-year guidance.

Net sales were up 15% on a constant currency basis to $13.2 billion, compared to the $13.12 billion estimated by analysts in an LSEG poll.

Novartis share price.

Quarterly adjusted core operating income rose 27% to $5.58 billion versus the $5.07 billion expected.

Novartis also raised its full-year guidance for 2025, forecasting net sales to grow by high single digits and core operating income to increase by low double-digits.

The results come as the global pharmaceutical industry waits with bated breath for anticipated U.S. tariffs after the President Donald Trump's administration launched an investigation into the sector earlier this month.

Read the full story here.

— Karen Gilchrist

Germany's largest lender Deutsche Bank posted higher-than-expected first-quarter profit.

Net profit attributable to shareholders reached 1.775 billion euros ($2.019 billion) in the first quarter, up 39% year-on-year and above analyst expectations of around 1.64 billion euros, according to a Reuters poll. The bank reported profit of 106 million euros for the December quarter.

Revenues reached 8.524 billion euros over the period, up 10% year-on-year and above a $7.224-billion-euro result in the fourth quarter.

Read the full story here.

Deutsche Bank share price.

Lufthansa reported a 10% year-on-year rise in first-quarter revenue, as the European airline group said risks had increased and tensions between the U.S. and the European Union could dent travel demand.

Revenue hit 8.1 billion euros ($9.2 billion) in the quarter, just ahead of estimates in an LSEG-compiled analyst consensus. Net income slid 21% to a 885 million euro loss, greater than the 617 million euro loss forecast in the same poll.

The group said tensions between the U.S. and key trade partners including the EU and China were leading to an "increasingly volatile global economic environment." It warned that this could also lead to financial losses due to more subdued demand, changes in demand, decreases in airfreight volumes, market fluctuations or higher costs for materials, aircraft and aircraft parts.

Lufthansa share price.

Europe's largest lender HSBC's first-quarter results on Tuesday beat estimates, though profit and revenue both declined on an year-on-year basis.

The bank also announced share buyback of up to $3 billion which it intends to complete before its 2025 interim results are announced.

Here are HSBC's first-quarter 2025 results compared with consensus estimates compiled by the bank.

• Profit before tax: $9.48 billion vs. $7.83 billion
• Revenue: $17.65 billion vs. $16.67 billion

The bank's profit, however, declined 25% on a year-on-year basis. Revenue fell 15% from last year.

Profit before tax, however, soared nearly 317% from the previous quarter.

Read the full story here.

— Lee Ying Shan

Germany's Porsche trimmed its sales and profit margin forecasts in an update published after the market close on Monday, partially citing the impact of U.S. tariffs.

The company said it now expects sales revenue of between 37 billion euros ($42.1 billion) and 38 billion for the 2025 financial year, down from a previous forecast of 39 billion to 40 billion euros. Its automotive net cash flow margin is now seen between 4% and 6%, cut from between 7% and 9%, while its automotive earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) margin was placed at 16.5% to 18.5%, down from 19% to 21%.

"The introduction of US import tariffs leads to negative impacts for the months of April and May 2025 which are included in the adjusted forecast. However, the adjusted forecast does not take into account further effects of the introduction of US import tariffs," the company said in a statement.

"Currently it is not yet possible to make a reliable assessment of the effects for the financial year," it added.

Porsche, which is majority-owned by the Volkswagen Group, said it was also suffering from waning Chinese demand for all-electric luxury cars.

First-quarter results are due later Tuesday.

— Jenni Reid

The U.K.'s FTSE 100 was seen opening 10.6 points higher at 8434.7 points, according to IG data at 5:13 a.m. in London.

Germany's DAX was seen rising 34.1 points to 22,297, while France's CAC 40 dropped 18 points to 7,553. Italy's MIB was last seen nudging 34 points higher to 37,001.

— Jenni Reid

Spot gold slid Tuesday, reversing gains from overnight as bargain-hunting kicked in.

The precious metal slid 0.33% as of 9.15 a.m. Singapore time on Monday to trade at $3,330.87 per ounce, as investors kept watch on developments around trade negotiations between the U.S. and China.

Spot gold

The latest moves in the bullion — which is a traditional hedge against political and financial instability — come after it crossed the $3,500 threshold to hit an all-time high last week, on the back of the heightened macroeconomic uncertainty.

— Amala Balakrishner

Oil prices fell Tuesday on the back of simmering trade tensions between the U.S. and China.

Brent Crude slipped 0.25% to trade at $65.61 per barrel as of 8.26 a.m. Singapore time,

Meanwhile, the West Texas Intermediate crude fell 0.31% to $61.86.

The moves come as the U.S.-China trade war dominates investor sentiment on oil prices.

China is the world's largest importer of oil and the higher U.S. tariffs may put pressure on its fuels and petrochemicals sectors.

— Amala Balakrishner

Megacap technology earnings this week will be pivotal for the market, according to Deutsche Bank.

Meta and Microsoft are both set to report earnings on Wednesday. Apple and Amazon are slated to release results on Thursday.

"It's fair to say that these Mag-7 earnings will go a long way to dictating the tone of the week," Jim Reid, the bank's global head of macro and thematic research, wrote to clients.

— Alex Harring