Market close
Belgian stocks ended the trading session higher on Tuesday, with the BEL 20 advancing 0.80% to reach a fresh record high. Sector strength in Healthcare, Financials and Telecoms contributed to the upward move at the close in Brussels.
Top and bottom movers
- Montea C.V.A. (EBR:MONTE) stood out as the session's best performer on the BEL 20, rising 2.73% - a gain of 2.00 points - to finish at 75.20.
- Warehouses de Pauw Comm VA (EBR:WDPP) gained 2.40%, up 0.60 points to close at 25.58.
- Cofinimmo SA (EBR:COFB) advanced 1.86%, an increase of 1.70 points, to end the day at 93.10.
- Umicore SA (EBR:UMI) was the largest decliner among the highlighted names, slipping 2.25% or 0.42 points to 18.27 at the close.
- D'Ieteren NV (EBR:IETB) fell 1.46%, down 2.80 points to finish at 189.10.
- Solvay SA (EBR:SOLB) declined 0.72%, a drop of 0.20 points, to end at 27.64.
Market breadth and price milestones
On the Brussels Stock Exchange, advancing issues outnumbered decliners by 53 to 37, while 21 securities closed unchanged. During the session, shares of Warehouses de Pauw Comm VA (EBR:WDPP) reached 52-week highs, and Cofinimmo SA (EBR:COFB) climbed to levels not seen in three years.
Commodities and foreign exchange
In commodities trading, Gold Futures for April delivery fell 3.21% - down 161.79 - settling at $4,884.51 a troy ounce. Crude oil for April delivery dropped 1.04% or 0.65 to $62.10 a barrel, while the April Brent oil contract declined 2.16% or 1.48 to trade at $67.17 a barrel.
In currency moves, EUR/USD was unchanged 0.16% at 1.18 and EUR/GBP was unchanged 0.55% at 0.87. The US Dollar Index Futures rose 0.42% to 97.22.
Outlook
Tuesday's close left the BEL 20 at a record level, driven by gains across several sectors and notable strength among selected real estate-related stocks. At the same time, commodity prices and some industrial and materials names showed downward pressure during the session.