The Ibex 35 has concluded the session this Tuesday with a slight decline of 0.07%, remaining at 19,727 points. The selective index approached during the day the psychological level of 19,900 points, on a day dominated by the fall in crude oil prices, which stand around 84 dollars per barrel, in a context of moderation of the conflict in the Middle East and the push from the corporate results of the first half.
Despite this certain relaxation of tensions, the authorities of Iran rejected on Monday afternoon having requested to open a negotiation process with the United States (USA). They insisted that there are no ongoing contacts and that, for now, the country is focusing on its own defense, after Washington and Tehran have halted the dynamics of attacks after 13 consecutive nights.
In parallel, the US Army has diverted or intercepted to date 17 commercial vessels that were trying to evade the naval blockade imposed against Iran in the Gulf of Oman. In response, the Central Headquarters of Khatam al-Anbiya, one of the main Iranian military commands, has warned the North American country that this type of measure "will not go unanswered."
On the other hand, Lebanon and Israel are scheduled to hold a new round of talks sponsored by the United States from August 4 to 6 in Rome, the capital of Italy, to "boost" the implementation of the framework agreement signed at the end of June between both parties.
"Markets continue to assume that the de-escalation of the conflict between the USA and Iran and reason will ultimately prevail in the conflict. Investors seem to consider that the parties involved have a limited appetite to intensify it, while recognizing that the 'status quo' is unsustainable. This combination leaves room to advance in a new ceasefire," explained the head of capital markets strategies at Tikehau Capital, Raphaël Thuin.
In this scenario, the Brent barrel, a reference in Europe, fell 4.19% at the close of the stock exchanges of the Old Continent, to 84.66 dollars, while the West Texas Intermediate (WTI), a reference in the United States, stood around 79.35 dollars, after decreasing by 3.92%.
Operators are also looking this week at the monetary policy meetings of the US Federal Reserve (Fed), the Bank of England, and the Bank of Japan, with analysts not expecting changes in interest rates.
In the case of the Fed, which meets this Wednesday, the chief market strategist of Lazard, Ronald Temple, has indicated that he expects the majority "to vote in favor of waiting for the meeting on September 16, when there is more clarity about the war and much more data will be available to evaluate regarding inflation and employment."
In the macroeconomic section, it has been published that the number of unemployed decreased by 213,300 people in the second quarter, which implies a decrease of 7.87% compared to the previous three months. Employment reached 22.77 million employed, surpassing the historical maximum of 22.46 million recorded at the end of last year.
On the business front, Merlin Properties has reported that it achieved a recurring profit of 180 million euros in the first half of 2026, 8% more than in the same period of the previous year, driven by the increase in rents from its data centers.
For its part, Telefónica Brasil, which operates under the Vivo brand in the country, has reported net earnings of 2,833.6 million Brazilian reais (486 million euros at the current exchange rate) between January and June 2026, representing a year-on-year increase of 17.9% compared to the first half of 2025 and the largest growth for this period in the last three years.
MasOrange has indicated that it generated 3,763 million euros in the first half, 1.3% more than in the same period of the previous year, supported by its strong commercial performance and the growth of the 'B2B' business and new services.
Regarding the Spanish Stock Exchange, the most notable rising values have been Amadeus (+3.31%), Cellnex (+3.15%), Logista (+2.56%), Inditex (+2.42%) and Indra (+2.32%). On the negative side, Solaria has led the declines (-4.80%), followed by Merlin Properties (-2.94%), Banco Sabadell (-2.26%), Acciona (-1.98%) and Endesa (-1.59%).
Among the main European markets, only the Italian index FTSE MIB has ended in red, with a drop of 0.69%. The rest has closed with gains: the British FTSE 100 has added 0.83%, the French Cac 40 0.63%, the German Dax 0.41% and the Euro Stoxx 50 has risen 0.12%.
On Wall Street, the main indices were trading positively: the Dow Jones was up 1.23%, the S&P 500 gained 0.33% and the Nasdaq 100, with a strong technology component, advanced 0.10%.
In the debt market, the yield of the Spanish 10-year bond fell to 3.555%, which placed the risk premium against the German 'bund' at the same term at 45.26 basis points.
In the foreign exchange market, the euro appreciated by 0.27% against the dollar, up to an exchange rate of 1.1400 dollars in the markets.
Regarding assets considered safe havens in phases of high volatility, the price of an ounce of gold dropped by 1.04%, down to 4,034 dollars, while bitcoin fell by 1.25%, down to 63,744 dollars.