- Volkswagen up after results
- Redcare Pharmacy soars after 2025 outlook above estimates
- Henkel down after soft guidance
- STOXX flat
March 11 (Reuters) - European shares were largely flat on Tuesday as investors took a breather following a global stock market rout triggered by concerns that U.S. trade policies could dent economic growth and lead to recession.
The pan-European STOXX 600 was down 0.1% as of 0940 GMT. The benchmark had dropped to its lowest in nearly a month on Monday, while Wall Street's tech-heavy Nasdaq sank 4% to a near six-month low.
U.S. President Donald Trump's unpredictable policy moves have stoked high volatility in global markets, especially his back-and-forth tariff moves against major trading partners such as Canada, Mexico and China.
Although Trump had floated a 25% tariff on European cars and other goods, he is yet to following through with the plans.
"The tariff policy is hitting the U.S. more than European peers, because now we do have a massive budget being unlocked in the European economy," said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior market analyst at Swissquote Bank.
"There is a growing conviction that the investments into the European defence and technology sectors are just going to rise massively."
The European aerospace and defence index , which has lately benefited from higher military spending prospects, jumped 1.3% after three straight sessions of declines.
Germany's Green party vowed to block military and infrastructure spending plans proposed by Friedrich Merz, likely the country's next chancellor, unless the measures include genuine support for climate policies and the economy.
The Greens, however, did forward rival proposals on Monday in a bid for compromise.
Volkswagen rose 2.4%. Europe's top automaker said it expects, at best, a slight increase in its 2025 operating profit margin. The automobiles and components index rose 1.1%.
Despite a recent pullback, the STOXX 600 has outperformed its Wall Street peers in 2025 with a 7.6% rise as a wide valuation gap between U.S. and European companies attracted global investors into the continent.
On the day, travel stocks fell after Delta Air Lines lowered its quarterly outlook. Shares of Easyjet fell 1.5%, Carnival declined 2.6% and International Consolidated Airlines dropped 4.6%.
Heavyweight healthcare stocks lost 1.3%, dragged by a 5.5% fall in Galderma after its shareholders sold a stake of around 6.3% in the Swiss skincare group for roughly 1.3 billion Swiss francs ($1.48 billion).
Henkel sank 9.4% on the German consumer goods and adhesives maker's soft forecast for 2025 organic sales growth on Tuesday.
Redcare Pharmacy rose 12.8%, the biggest gainer on the STOXX 600, after the company forecast 2025 sales above estimates.
Reporting by Nikhil Sharma; Editing by Janane Venkatraman and Devika Syamnath
Source: Reuters