The Swiss Market Index (SMI) closed 0.54% higher at 14,525 points on Tuesday, extending a recovery from a cautious start as gains broadened across 16 of the 20 constituents. The index climbed steadily through the session, briefly touching its daily high before paring gains in volatile afternoon trade.
Momentum was driven by stronger-than-expected eurozone economic data and a sharp retreat in oil prices amid tentative diplomatic efforts to de-escalate the Middle East conflict. ABB led advancers with a 1.8% gain, followed by Swisscom at 1.4% and Sika at 1.5%. The gains offset declines in heavyweights Nestlé (-0.8%), Richemont (-0.6%) and Alcon (-0.3%).
Pharma stocks Novartis (+1.3%) and Roche (+0.9%) provided notable support to the benchmark, while Amrize fell 2.6% to an all-time low after announcing its third CFO departure in under a year. Givaudan bucked sector weakness with a 0.6% rise despite reports of an Indian antitrust investigation.
In the broader Swiss Performance Index (SPI), which rose 0.6% to 20,430 points, SMG Swiss Marketplace Group surged 8.2% following strong half-year results, revenue confidence and a leadership change. TX Group advanced 12.3%, ams-OSRAM gained 8.3%, Arbonia climbed 3.5% despite trimmed EBITDA guidance linked to SAP integration issues, and Luzerner Kantonalbank rose 3.0% after lifting profit forecasts. Orior plunged 9.5%, Leonteq fell 4.4% after board reshuffles, and DKSH dropped 2.3% following a Berenberg downgrade.
Sector performance showed technology (+1.6%), industrials (+1.4%) and healthcare (+1.1%) leading gains, while consumer staples (-0.2%) and consumer discretionary (-0.6%) lagged. In the U.S., major indices turned positive after a mixed start, with the Dow Jones Industrial flat at 53,430 points, the S&P 500 up 0.16% at 7,665 points and the Nasdaq 100 gaining 0.47% to 29,159 points.
Oil prices extended losses sharply despite U.S. threats of economic sanctions against Iran, as a speech by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent offered no concrete measures to escalate pressure. Analysts at Commerzbank noted the key question remains how aggressively Washington will enforce secondary sanctions against Iran’s top trading partners, particularly China. Nvidia shares rose 1.5% after a multi-day slump, with Mark Malek of Siebert Financial citing strong AI-driven demand and expectations for solid quarterly results due Wednesday. Marvell Technology led Nasdaq 100 advancers at 6.0%, followed by AMD and Arm Holdings with gains up to 4.3%.
Dick’s Sporting Goods sank nearly 27% after cutting guidance on weak performance at its Foot Locker acquisition, dragging Nike down 2.8% as the sector’s largest component. SpaceX shares rose briefly by around 2% after Elon Musk announced plans to launch the first AI-capable satellites in Q4 2027 using Nvidia technology, aiming to deploy up to 1 million AI satellites under FCC approval. Meta advanced 1.3% in early U.S. trade following reports of a consumer-facing AI agent launch in late August or early September, alongside a new AI model slated for October.
