This is CNBC’s live blog covering European markets. European markets traded sharply lower on Monday as global investors braced for U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade tariffs to come into force. The regional Stoxx 600 index was 1.4% lower by 3 p.m. in London, with all sectors and major bourses firmly in negative territory. The sell-off comes ahead of a raft of Trump tariffs set to come into effect on Wednesday, including a 25% levy on “all cars that are not made in the United States.” Europe’s Stoxx Automobiles and Parts index was 3% lower. Volkswagen dropped 4%, while Mercedes-Benz was down 3.3% and Renault shed 2.5%. The president is also expected to announce his plan for reciprocal tariffs. The Trump administration has dubbed April 2 — the day when Trump’s tariffs come into force and more sectoral levies are expected to be announced — “Liberation Day.” Global markets and the U.S.’ biggest trading partners have been roiled by the fledging global trade war but Trump appears unrepentant. The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday that the president had, in recent days, pushed his advisors to get more aggressive when it comes to tariffs. In a Saturday interview with NBC News, Trump said he “couldn’t care less” if foreign automakers raise their prices due to his auto tariffs. U.S. stocks opened lower on Monday. U.S. stocks open lower U.S. stocks opened lower on Monday, with investors remaining on edge ahead of President Donald Trump’s tariff plans on Wednesday. The S&P 500 pulled back 1.3%, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 2.3%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average pulled back 273 points, or 0.6%. — Brian Evans Ubisoft sinks 15% John Keeble | Getty ImagesThe Ubisoft logo displayed during the Brand Licensing Europe at ExCel London on September 24, 2024. Ubisoft shares slumped on Monday, extending losses as investors continued to digest news of the company’s move to spin off its three main game franchises as a new subsidiary backed by Tencent. The French gaming giant said last week it plans to spin off some of its top intellectual property — including the Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry and Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six game series — as a newly created unit. Ubisoft will be the majority owner of the subsidiary — but China’s Tencent will take a 25% minority stake for 1.16 billion euros ($1.25 billion). The transaction is expected to close before the end of 2025, pending necessary regulatory clearances. Shares of Ubisoft fell more than 15% Monday during afternoon deals. – Ryan Browne Renault shares down nearly 3% Stephane Mouchmouche | Hans Lucas | Afp | Getty ImagesThe electric Renault 5 at Automotive Summit at the Porte de Versailles exhibition center, Paris, France, on October 15, 2024. Shares of Renault traded 2.7% lower at 1:08 p.m. London time (8:08 a.m. ET). It comes after the company confirmed its 2025 full-year guidance of a free cash flow of more than 2 billion euros ($2.16 billion), as well as its operating margin guidance of at least 7%. Renault also announced on Monday that it would acquire Nissan’s stake in Renault Nissan Automotive India Private Ltd, giving Renault 100% ownership of the project. It came alongside announcements on other strategic projects with Nissan, in which Renault owns a stake. More broadly, shares of European carmakers fell on Monday as investors awaited U.S. President Donald Trump’s new 25% tariffs on cars made outside of America. The levies come into force on April 2. — Chloe Taylor Novo Nordisk urges against ‘speculation’ as Trump tariffs loom CNBCSEIZED OZEMPIC, WEGOVY AND OTHER WEIGHT LOSS DRUGS AT JFK AIRPORT’S INTERNATIONAL MAIL FACILITY. Novo Nordisk has urged people not to speculate ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump’s anticipated latest tariff announcement, saying the Wegovy maker was focused on remaining flexible. “It doesn’t make a lot of sense to speculate too much,” Chairman Helge Lund told CNBC on the sidelines of the Danish pharmaceutical giant’s Annual General Meeting last week. The chairman said businesses like Novo were currently operating in a period of “extraordinary geopolitical turmoil,” but added that it was “laser-focused on what we can impact.” “We’re trying to build as much flexibility and resilience into the organization as we can … so we can handle any outcome,” he added. Trump has said he will announce reciprocal tariffs on global trading partners on April 2, which he has dubbed “Liberation Day,” as part of wider efforts to combat trade imbalances and boost U.S. manufacturing. Novo’s hugely popular obesity and diabetes drugs Wegovy and Ozempic have a large U.S. customer base and could be heavily impacted by broad reciprocal tariffs or targeted pharma levies. Lund would not be pressed on what share of its obesity drugs sold in the U.S. derive from domestic production versus overseas. He instead pointed to the firm’s “very significant” manufacturing set-up in the U.S., which he said was expanding. — Karen Gilchrist British assets rally after Starmer-Trump call Carl Court | Via ReutersBritish Prime Minister Keir Starmer and U.S. President Donald Trump shake hands during a joint press conference in the East Room at the White House, Feb. 27, 2025 in Washington, D.C., U.S. The British pound gained 0.2% against the U.S. dollar on Monday morning to trade at around $1.2965. Meanwhile, the yield on U.K. 10-year government bonds — known as gilts — were 3 basis points lower. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions. The price moves come after British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and U.S. President Donald Trump discussed their respective teams’ “productive negotiations” on a U.K.-U.S. economic deal during a Sunday evening phone call, according to a statement from Downing Street. The two leaders are said to have agreed that their delegations’ talks on such a deal will “continue at pace this week.” Trump has previously suggested the two countries could reach a “real trade deal” that allows Britain to evade the full force of his tariffs regime. — Chloe Taylor Aston Martin shares pop nearly 10% on funding from chairman investment Benjamin Cremel | Afp | Getty ImagesA sign is pictured above the entrance to the Aston Martin luxury car dealership on Park Lane in central London on April 11, 2024. Shares of Britain’s Aston Martin jumped nearly 10% on Monday after the luxury carmaker said it will raise more than £125 million ($161.7 million) through funding from Chairman Lawrence Stroll’s investment vehicle. Stroll’s stake in the company is poised to increase to roughly 33% from about 27.7% as part of the transaction. Shares of Aston Martin were last seen trading 9.7% higher on the news. The London-listed stock is down around 39% year-to-date. “This renewed support from Lawrence and his Yew Tree Consortium partners underlines their immense confidence in our team and the future of the Company,” Aston Martin CEO Adrian Hallmark said in a statement. “By strengthening the balance sheet, this investment provides additional headroom to support our future product innovation and business transformation activities, which combined, will accelerate our progress into being a sustainably profitable company,” he added. — Sam Meredith Thames Water selects KKR for next stage of equity raise process Mike Kemp | In Pictures | Getty ImagesThames Water utility van in the Cty of London on 3rd December 2024 in London, United Kingdom. Thames Water Utilities Ltd is a large private utility company responsible for the water supply and waste water treatment in most of Greater London and surrounding areas in England. (photo by Mike Kemp/In Pictures via Getty Images) Thames Water announced Monday that it had selected U.S. private equity firm KKR as the “preferred partner” in the next stage of its equity raise process. The company said it had chosen KKR following “a detailed assessment of proposals received,” touting the move as a step toward delivering a sustainable recapitalization. “Agreed transaction terms are targeted for the second quarter of 2025 with a view to completing a recapitalisation in the second half of 2025,” Thames Water said in a statement. “KKR’s proposal includes financial metrics which indicate a material impairment of the Class A debt and discussions continue in relation to other aspects of the proposal.” The firm stressed there was “no certainty that a binding equity proposal will be forthcoming,” as it remained subject to due diligence and regulatory approvals. Last month, CNBC reported that KKR had offered around $5 billion to take over the struggling company in a management-led buyout. Thames Water, Britain’s biggest water utility service, began a capital raising process last summer, as mounting debt and difficulty raising cash saw the company label itself “uninvestable.” — Chloe Taylor Fortnox shares surge on $5.5 billion takeover bid Swedish financial services firm Fortnox said Monday it had received an offer from a consortium made up of private equity firm EQT and First Kraft to buy the company and take it private. The bid offered shareholders 90 Swedish krona ($9.01) per share of Fortnox, valuing the company at 54.9 billion krona ($5.49 billion). It represented a 38% premium on the closing price of March 28, Fortnox said, which was the last day of trading before the offer was made. If the proposed dividend of 0.25 krona per share is approved at next week’s annual general meeting, the consortium will lower its offer to 89.75 krone per share. Shares of Fortnox were 36% higher at 8:38 a.m. London time. — Chloe Taylor These European defense stocks have gained more than 100% on EU spending plans — and they could have further to climb Yan Dobronosov | Global Images Ukraine | Getty ImagesRheinmetall MAN Military Vehicle drives on the road on Nov. 20, 2024, in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. Europe’s Stoxx aerospace and defense index has gained around 34% since the beginning of the year — and analysts think some stocks have further to rise. In Germany, lawmakers have passed a historic debt reform, paving the way for a huge splurge on defense, while U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has pledged to hike Britain’s national spend on defense. The EU has also drawn up plans to mobilize up to 800 billion euros ($862.2 billion) to bolster regional security. Read the full story here. — Chloe Taylor Spot gold crosses $3,100 threshold to hit fresh record high Spot gold crossed the $3,100 threshold to hit a fresh record high of $3,106.34 per ounce at 11 a.m. Singapore time on Monday. The price of the precious metal has been on the rise as investors flock to the safe haven asset amid concerns around U.S. President Donald Trump’s fresh tariffs. — Amala Balakrishner President Donald Trump has pushed advisors to be more aggressive on tariffs, The Wall Street Journal reports President Donald Trump has pushed his team to be more aggressive when it comes to tariffs, The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday. The article followed comments made by the president on Saturday when he told NBC News that he “couldn’t care less” if foreign automakers raise their prices due to these new tariffs. Trump’s economic tariffs, including a 25% levy on “all cars that are not made in the United States,” will go into effect on April 2, a day the president has dubbed “Liberation Day.” — Lisa Kailai Han European markets: Here are the opening calls European markets are expected to open sharply lower Monday as global markets prepare for U.S. President Donald Trump’s previously announced trade tariffs to come into force. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 index is expected to open 41 points lower at 8,625, Germany’s DAX down 141 points at 22,320, France’s CAC 54 points lower at 7,862 and Italy’s FTSE MIB 371 points lower at 38,727, according to data from IG.  There are no major earnings Monday; data releases include Italian and German inflation prints. — Holly Ellyatt ...read more read less