LONDON – European stocks opened on mixed territory on Tuesday, with investors focusing on an emerging battle between vaccine maker AstraZeneca and the EU and political uncertainty in Italy.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 floated above the flat line in early trade, with chemicals adding 1.1%, while travel and leisure stocks fell 0.9%.
The actions of the British-Swedish drug manufacturer AstraZeneca will be closely monitored on Tuesday, after the EU accused it of not doing enough to resolve a dispute over how many doses the EU will be able to provide. The AstraZeneca vaccine has not yet been approved by the European Medicines Agency, but is expected to be imminent. AstraZeneca said last week that it was facing production problems.
In other news about the coronavirus, Moderna said Monday that it is accelerating work on a Covid-19 booster shot for the recently discovered variant in South Africa. The company’s researchers say its current coronavirus vaccine appears to work against the two highly transmissible strains found in the UK and South Africa.
Italian action will be closely monitored on Tuesday as a new political crisis emerges. Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte is expected to resign on Tuesday after a morning cabinet meeting and will try to lead a new term. The move comes after weeks of tensions between Conte and Matteo Renzi, the head of a junior coalition party in government.
Elsewhere, U.S. futures fell slightly on Monday night as Wall Street prepared for the midst of corporate profit seasons; General Electric, Verizon and Johnson & Johnson should report results before the bell, while technology giant Microsoft will announce its second-quarter tax gains after the bell. In Asia-Pacific, stocks fell in trading on Tuesday morning.
Earnings come from LVMH, Novartis and UBS on Tuesday. Data releases include UK employment figures for November.