European shares slip on heightened US trade uncertainty

By Johann M Cherian

Feb 23 (Reuters) - European shares edged lower in choppy trade on Monday after President Donald Trump announced a new blanket tariff rate, reviving uncertainty over U.S. trade policy.

The STOXX slipped 0.27% to 628.87 points by 0942 GMT, with Germany's DAX down the most by 0.4%.

The pan-European index ended last week with a record high after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down tariffs that Trump had slapped on global economies last year. 

Over the weekend, Trump announced a new 10%

rate and then lifted it to 15%, sparking ambiguity over the relevance of trade deals, such as those with the European Union. The European Commission has ruled out changes.

"It is a positive outcome and shows that there are still limits for presidential power in the U.S.," said Hertta Alava, a senior strategist at Nordea.

"But short-term uncertainty actually rises a bit, because Trump will try to impose tariffs based on other laws. It is also uncertain, how this will impact negotiated trade deals."

The resurgence in trade tensions with the U.S. over Greenland this year, along with Washington's attempt to upend the global security order, has pushed the eurozone to forge partnerships with Asia and Latin America, while also seeking greater cooperation within Europe.    

On Monday, technology and industrials led sectors declines, while banks, seen as more domestically focused, were among the top gainers.

The Euro STOXX volatility index, a reflection of investor nervousness, also spiked 0.62 points to 19.31.

The broader defence sector lost 1.1% after Reuters reported that Iran has indicated it is prepared to make concessions on its nuclear programme if the U.S. met certain demands.

French defence technology group Exosens shed 2.6%, retreating from a record high hit on Friday, even as it issued a higher medium-term guidance.

Novo Nordisk fell 10% after the Danish company said its experimental obesity drug CagriSema did not meet the primary endpoint in a trial designed to show it was non-inferior to competitor Eli Lilly’s Tirzepatide in reducing body weight.

Italy's biggest utility Enel jumped 5.4% after saying it would increase its capital expenditure over the next three years, shifting focus to renewables, mainly in Europe and the U.S.

Johnson Matthey slumped 15% after agreeing to slash the sale price of its catalyst technologies business to Honeywell , after the unit underperformed in fiscal 2025.

Dutch postal operator PostNL added 1.5% after forecasting 2026 operating earnings broadly in line with last year's consensus-beating number.

(Reporting by Johann M Cherian in Bengaluru and Danilo Masoni in Milan; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala and Eileen Soreng)