The Swiss Market Index (SMI) ended Monday virtually unchanged, down 0.07% at 14,447 points, after earlier falling as much as 0.55% during the session.
Profit-taking weighed on industrial heavyweight ABB, which fell 2.5%, while pharmaceutical giants Roche and Novartis declined 1.4% and 0.5%, respectively. The two healthcare stocks had outperformed the broader market last week. UBS advanced 1.7%, extending gains after its latest quarterly results, while Vetropack surged 4.4% following its strong half-year report on Friday. Logitech rose 1.4%, Richemont gained 1.3%, and Nestlé and Givaudan each added 1.0%.
Baumaterial stocks were mixed, with Holcim up 0.3% and Sika gaining 0.9%, while Amrize fell 0.7%. Geberit closed flat after Citigroup raised its price target despite maintaining a Neutral rating. Sika received a boost from UBS, which reaffirmed its Buy recommendation.
On the downside, AMS Osram dropped 5.8%, Centiel slid 6.5%, Idorsia fell 3.3%, and Siegfried lost 5.8%. DocMorris eased 0.6% despite Deutsche Bank’s upward revision to its price target and a maintained Buy rating. Regenxbio plummeted 23% after the FDA imposed a clinical hold on its experimental gene therapy for Hunter syndrome.
U.S. steel and aluminum producers rallied on reports that President Donald Trump plans to impose 50% tariffs on Canadian autos, trucks, auto parts, and steel starting January 1, 2027, following the collapse of trade negotiations. Cleveland-Cliffs surged more than 7%, while Nucor, Steel Dynamics, and Century Aluminum each gained over 4%. Canada is preparing retaliatory tariffs in response to prior U.S. import duties on other products.
Nvent Electric fell 1.1% after agreeing to acquire Maverick Power, a private data-center equipment supplier, for $1.75 billion. H.B. Fuller declined 1.2% after its board rejected Ancora’s takeover bid for its Building Adhesives division.
U.S. equity benchmarks showed divergent moves: the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.3% to 53,422, the S&P 500 slipped 0.4% to 7,645, and the Nasdaq 100 dropped 1.3% to 28,920. Among the Magnificent Seven tech stocks, Nvidia led declines with a 2.5% drop, followed by Tesla at 2.4%, while Alphabet led gains with a 1.1% advance.
Oil prices retreated after last week’s gains, with Brent crude for October delivery trading at $93.10 per barrel, down more than 1% on the day. The decline followed a roughly 5% weekly increase. Investors also monitored geopolitical tensions, including U.S. plans to impose what it termed the “harshest sanctions in history” on Iran, aimed at reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Iran warned of severe consequences in response to what it described as an economic war.
Market focus shifts to the Federal Reserve’s annual Jackson Hole symposium, starting Thursday, where Fed Chair Kevin Warsh is scheduled to speak. Analysts expect his remarks to provide clues on the central bank’s future policy path amid elevated oil prices and rising bond yields. The outcome may hinge on whether Warsh emphasizes inflation or bond-market stability, according to eToro analyst Josh Gilbert.
