Market Report - Europe
Europe midday: Shares fall, oil up as Iran 'seizes', attacks ships in Hormuz strait
By Frank Prenesti
Date: Wednesday 22 Apr 2026
(Sharecast News) - European shares slipped into the red and oil prices rose at midday on Wednesday as Iran claimed to have seized two ships and fired on others in the Hormuz strait despite US President Donald Trump's unilateral extension of the two-week ceasefire with Tehran.
The pan-regional Stoxx 600 index was down 0.03% to 615.84 at 1148 BST. Germany's DAX fell 0.30%, France's CAC 40 declined by 0.33% and Italy's MIB was flat.
Britain's FTSE fell 0.02% after inflation accelerated to 3.3% in March from 3% the month before, driven by higher fuel prices due to the Iran war.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) navy seized two ships in the strait of Hormuz, according to Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency.
The ships were identified as MSC Francesca and Epaminondas, which were reportedly directed to Iranian shores after they were "operating without the required authorisation and for manipulating navigation systems".
Meanwhile, the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said it received a report of a cargo ship was fired at about eight nautical miles west of Iran, adding that the crew were safe and accounted for with no reported damage to the vessel.
It follows an earlier report of a container ship that was fired at by an IRGC gunboat off the coast of Oman.
Trump overnight announced an extension to the two-week ceasefire only hours after he had threatened more bombing of Iran if officials did not return to the negotiating table.
Oil prices headed back toward $100 a barrel, with Brent crude up 0.7% to $99.31 a barrel.
"Yesterday's ceasefire extension brought a somewhat mixed response from markets, with Trump's decision to extend in the absence of any tangible talks serving to highlight just how weak his position currently is. Despite warning that he won't extend, this time around he can't even say that he has seen any progress that provides the basis for this concession," said Scope Markets analyst Joshua Mahony.
"His threats appear empty and in the absence of any negotiations, it is down the Trump to concede further or escalate. For Iran, there is a clarity that each passing day deals additional damage to the global economy, with US inflation on the rise and Trump's popularity waning."
"It appears he may have met his match against a disjointed Iran that knows it can withstand pain longer than any of its adversaries. While there is a hope that the blockade will bring the Iranians to the table as oil well shut-ins threaten future revenues, that is far from guaranteed."
In equity news, Dutch chipmaking equipment manufacturer ASM International topped the Stoxx on the back of better than expected first-quarter earnings after the close of trade on Tuesday.
FDJ United fell after the lottery operator cut its 2026 outlook late on Tuesday following a fall in first quarter revenues.
Eurofins Scientific also slumped after the French lab testing group released results on Wednesday.
Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com
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