Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, US, on Monday, March 9, 2026. <\/p>\n
Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty Images<\/p>\n
LONDON \u2014 European stocks opened in negative territory on Monday as investors grapple with a further escalation in the Iran war and the conflict enters its fifth week.<\/p>\n
The pan-European Stoxx 600 opened 0.3% lower with autos, banks, industrials and financial services all trading in negative territory.<\/p>\n
European bourses followed the negative lead set by their Asia-Pacific overnight, as traders digest the latest war developments over the weekend. <\/p>\n
U.S. President Donald Trump told the Financial Times<\/a>\u00a0on Sunday that said he could “take the oil in Iran<\/a>” and seize Iran’s export hub of Kharg Island. Meanwhile, Yemen’s Houthi movement\u00a0said Saturday it had fired missiles at Israel<\/a>, marking its first direct involvement in the U.S.- and Israeli-led war against Iran.<\/p>\n In a post on X, Houthi spokesperson Yahya Saree said the group launched a barrage of ballistic missiles at what it described as sensitive Israeli military sites, in support of Iran and allied Hezbollah forces in Lebanon.<\/p>\n The strike signals a further escalation in a conflict that began with U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iranian targets on Feb. 28. Oil prices were higher in early Asia trading hours.\u00a0West Texas Intermediate crude futures<\/a>\u00a0were up 2.58% at $102.19 per barrel.<\/p>\n G7 finance ministers, energy ministers and central bank governors are set to hold an emergency meeting on Monday<\/a>. The meeting, set to be held virtually, marks the fourth time since the start of the war in Iran that the G7 has convened at a ministerial level.<\/p>\n Data releases on Monday include EU economic sentiment and Germany’s latest inflation print.<\/p>\n \u2014 CNBC’s Lee Ying Shan, Anniek Bao and Leonie Kidd contributed to this market report.<\/p>\n