City workers in the La Defense business district of Paris, France, on Thursday, Oct. 9, 2025. <\/p>\n
Nathan Laine | Bloomberg | Getty Images<\/p>\n
Europe-listed shares traded sharply lower on Thursday, as fears of escalation in the U.S.-Iran war gripped global markets once again. <\/p>\n
The pan-European Stoxx 600<\/a> was 0.9% lower shortly after 10:15 a.m. in London, paring greater losses earlier in the session. Most sectors and major regional bourses remain firmly in negative territory. <\/p>\n Chipmakers were hardest hit, with the Stoxx Europe Technology<\/a> index falling 2.8% and heading for its worst day since February 3. <\/p>\n In an address<\/a> to the American people on Wednesday evening, U.S. President Donald Trump said he expected the war to last another two to three weeks, during which time U.S. forces will “hit” Iran “extremely hard.”<\/p>\n U.S. stock futures tumbled as Trump’s speech drew to a close, reversing a rally seen in Wall Street’s regular session on Wednesday. On Thursday morning, futures data pointed<\/a> to a notably lower open for New York-listed stocks ahead of the opening bell. <\/p>\n Stocks listed in Asia also reversed gains<\/a> on Thursday as investors digested Trump’s latest update. <\/p>\n Oil prices surged in the wake of the president’s address, with global benchmark Brent crude jumping more than 6% to trade at $107.98. <\/p>\n Oil prices have skyrocketed since the U.S. and Israel launched strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, sparking retaliatory strikes across the Gulf from Tehran. Over the course of March, global benchmark\u00a0Brent crude<\/a>\u00a0oil surged more than 60%,\u00a0marking<\/a>\u00a0the biggest monthly price gain since records began in the 1980s.<\/p>\n European stocks<\/a> jumped on Wednesday ahead of Trump’s address, after the president first said the war would be over within weeks. <\/p>\n Investors are also reacting to reports on Thursday that the Trump administration is preparing new tariffs on pharmaceutical companies<\/a> that have not made deals to guarantee low drug prices in the United States. Bloomberg first reported the news, citing anonymous sources. <\/p>\n In corporate news, British oil major Shell<\/a> is reportedly in talks with the Venezuelan government to develop four large areas in some of the country’s biggest offshore natural gas fields, according to Reuters<\/a>.<\/p>\n