European stocks rise as oil tops $100 on Hormuz fears
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- Stoxx 600 closed 0.6% higher on Tuesday, with utilities, insurance, telecoms, and oil and gas stocks leading gains while technology and industrials lagged the broader index.
- Brent crude rose 1.5% to $101.66 per barrel and WTI gained 1.2% to $94.58, after oil prices spiked as much as 4% intraday on supply concerns tied to the Strait of Hormuz.
- Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC the U.S. is allowing Iranian oil tankers passage through the Strait, even as Trump was left "disappointed" after European leaders rejected calls for their countries' involvement in a U.S.-led coalition.
- The Federal Reserve opened a two-day policy meeting Tuesday, with traders forecasting a rate hold Wednesday as the Iran war complicates the outlook despite Trump's sustained pressure to cut rates.
- Saul Kavonic, head of energy research at MST Marquee, said "mixed messages" from the Trump administration on the war's duration are keeping markets focused on escalatory actions on the ground, including fresh attacks on Middle East energy infrastructure.
- S&P 500 was last seen 0.3% higher, with the Dow up 0.2% and the Nasdaq up 0.4%, while Asian markets broadly rose overnight.
Why it matters: With oil pushing above $100 and the Fed expected to hold rates Wednesday, energy and rate-sensitive sectors like utilities and insurance outperformed while tech lagged. The split between Bessent letting Iranian tankers through and Trump publicly scolding Europe for refusing to patrol the Strait signals a fragmented Western response, meaning oil supply risks — and the equities volatility that comes with them — aren't going away soon.
