Zalando said it got merger control clearance from the European Commission to acquire online retailer About You. Having received the green light from the EU’s executive arm, the company said Tuesday that the transaction meets all closing conditions. The German online retailer disclosed the deal in December last year. In January, Zalando launched a public tender offer to buy its smaller rival, valuing it at around 1.21 billion euros ($1.24 billion at the time), in a move to strengthen its presence in the European e-commerce fashion market. The takeover offer is planned to be settled on July 11. Shareholders who accepted the offer will receive 6.50 euros for each tendered About You share. Zalando said it has secured more than 90% of About You’s share capital and noted that it still has the intention to force the remaining shareholders out of the business through a squeeze-out.

The Swiss market started off on a positive note Tuesday morning, and despite slipping below the flat line and seeing a long spell in negative territory, emerged higher in the final hour of the session to settle with a modest gain. The benchmark SMI settled with a gain of 41.85 points or 0.35% at 11,963.31. The index touched a high of 11,965.90 and a low of 11,838.71 in the session. Novartis climbed 1.8% and Adecco gained 1.1%. Straumann Holding, Givaudan, Sonova, Logitech International, Roche Holding, Alcon and Swisscom ended higher by 0.6 to 1%. VAT Group, ABB, Amrize and Sandoz Group lost 1.1 to 1.5%. Holcim, UBS Group, Schindler Ps, SIG Group, Sika and Julius Baer ended down 0.5 to 0.9%. On the economic front, Swiss retail sales stalled in May after growing in the previous ten months, data from the Federal Statistical Office revealed. Retail sales showed a flat change in May on a yearly basis versus a 0.9% increase in April. Monthly, retail sales dropped 0.6% in May after remaining stagnant in April. In nominal terms, retail turnover dropped 0.8% from last year. The Swiss procure.ch Manufacturing PMI jumped to 49.6 in June 2025 from 42.1 in May, returning to levels last seen early this year. Although the index remained below the 50-point expansion threshold for the 30th consecutive month, the sharp rebound signals the sector is edging closer to stabilization.

Europe
European stocks closed broadly lower on Tuesday with investors awaiting Trump administration's trade negotiations with major countries in Europe and elsewhere ahead of the July 9 deadline for reciprocal tariffs. Investors also digested the latest batch of economic data from the region. Dovish comments from officials of the European Central Bank helped limit markets' downside. The pan European Stoxx 600 fell 0.21%. Germany's DAX lost 0.99% and France's CAC 40 edged down 0.04%, while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 closed up 0.28%. Switzerland's SMI gained 0.35%. Among other markets in Europe, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Poland and Sweden ended weak. Russia and Spain edged down slightly. Belgium, Greece, Iceland, Portugal and Turkiye closed higher. In the UK market, Convatec Group closed down 5.7%. Rolls-Royce Holdings, Babcock International, Barclays, Standard Chartered, Melrose Industries, Natwest Group, The Sage Group and British American Tobacco ended lower by 1.3 to 3%. Diageo climbed 3.75% and Whitbread advanced 3.4%. JD Sports Fashion, AstraZeneca, Glencore, Vodafone Group, Compass Group, WPP and Intercontinental Hotels gained 2 to 3%. In the German market, Siemens Energy fell nearly 6%. Rheinmetall, MTU Aero Engines, Deutsche Bank and Heidelberg Materials lost 3.6 to 4.2%. In the French market, Thales ended more than 5% down. Safran, Publicis Groupe, Airbus and Legrand lost 2 to 4%. STMicroElectronics, ArcelorMittal, Vivendi, Saint-Gobain, Schneider Electric, BNP Paribas, AXA and Societe Generale closed lower by 1.2 to 2%.

United States
After trending higher over the past several sessions, the major U.S. stock indexes turned in a mixed performance during trading on Tuesday. While the Dow showed a notable advance to reach its best closing level in over four months, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 gave back ground. The Dow jumped 400.17 points or 0.9 percent to 44,494.94, but the S&P 500 edged down 6.94 points or 0.1 percent to 6,198.01 and the Nasdaq slid 166.84 points or 0.8 percent to 20,202.89. The mixed performance on Wall Street came following the strong performance seen in recent sessions, which saw the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 reach new record highs. Traders also continued to keep an eye on developments in Washington, D.C., where the Senate narrowly voted to approve President Donald Trump's massive tax cuts and spending bill. With Vice President J.D. Vance voting to break a 50-50 tie, the legislation now heads back to the House, where the Republicans hold a narrow majority. On the U.S. economic front, the Institute for Supply Management released a report showing a modest increase by its reading on U.S. manufacturing activity in the month of June. The ISM said its manufacturing PMI crept up to 49.0 in June from 48.5 in May, although a reading below 50 still indicates contraction. Economists had expected the index to inch up to 48.8. Boeing has named Stephen Parker president and chief executive of its defense, space and security business, removing the interim tag he has carried since last September. Boeing on Tuesday said Parker will oversee all aspects of the unit, which has recently been plagued by losses, production delays and cost overruns, as well as the Starliner spacecraft program that left a pair of astronauts stuck in space for more than nine months.

Asia
The approaching end of the grace period granted by U.S. President Trump for the introduction of comprehensive tariffs continues to cause caution on the Asian stock markets. With regard to Japan, Trump has just increased the pressure with his statement that he doubts an agreement will be reached. He is threatening to impose tariffs of 30 to 35 per cent in this case. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index fell today again, losing 0.3 per cent to 39,874 points. In Seoul, the Kospi lost 1.1 per cent.

Bonds
In the U.S. bond market, treasuries moved back to the downside following the notably rebound seen on Monday. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, rose 2.1 basis points to 4.251 percent.

Analysis
Barclays lowers Temenos to CHF 65 (67) – Equalweight
Barclays lowers Mercedes-Benz to EUR 52.50 (57.50) – Equalweight
Bank of America raises Bechtle to EUR 32 (30) – Underperform