Franklin FTSE United Kingdom ETF

FLGB

Market cap $1.02B

European member states backed a free-trade agreement with the Mercosur bloc of South America, including Brazil, Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay, and Uruguay. Some see it as both a political statement and an economic agreement.

The economists said those losses could be recouped if eurozone members lowered barriers to trade in goods and services within the currency area.

The ECB is very unlikely to raise its key interest rate this year, with a weaker dollar among a number of potential developments keeping eurozone inflation low, Bank of France Governor Francois Villeroy de Galhau said.

Germany's export-driven economy faces severe headwinds from US tariffs, euro appreciation, and lost access to cheap Russian energy. German trade surpluses are shrinking, with 2025 exports to the US projected down 7% and overall trade surplus far below 2024 levels.

European stocks are expected to open broadly higher on Tuesday as investors track developments following the U.S.' ouster of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.

European stocks are expected to open in broadly flat territory on Tuesday as markets continue to struggle for direction in a holiday-shortened trading week.

The Stoxx 600 notched a new record closing high, buoyed by Copenhagen-listed Novo Nordisk.

UK stocks paused on Friday near multi-week highs as weakness in homebuilder shares weighed following retail sales and consumer sentiment data that pointed to an economic slowdown.

Eurozone consumer sentiment unexpectedly weakened in December despite cooling inflation and economic resilience against tariffs, a monthly indicator showed.

After a bruising year marked by soft earnings and fickle investor sentiment, the UK equity market is quietly repositioning itself for a rebound in 2026, according to a new strategy note from UBS. The Swiss bank argues that the FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 are entering the new year on firmer footing than many investors expected, with purchasing managers' indices (PMIs) for both indices now solidly in expansion territory.