Europe open: Shares down as Nvidia Q1 fails to lift mood
By Frank Prenesti
Date: Thursday 21 May 2026
(Sharecast News) - European shares opened lower on Thursday as even record earnings from Wall Street darling Nvidia failed to lift sentiment.
The pan-regional Stoxx 600 index was down 0.2% to 619 points with all major bourses lower.
Oil prices rebounded above $100 a barrel despite the usual comments from US President Donald Trump that his war of choice on Iran would be over soon.
Trump claimed overnight that peace talks with Tehran were in the final stages, sending the price of Brent crude down around 5%. On Thursday it was up 1.45% to $106 a barrel.
On Wall Street computer chip giant Nvidia reported after the final bell, smashing first-quarter earnings and revenue expectations powered by continuing demand from artificial intelligence data centres.
Revenue came in at $81.62bn for the quarter, beating expectations of $78.86bn. Earnings also exceeded Wall Street forecasts of $1.76 per share with a reported figure of $1.87 per share. However, shares were down in aftermarket trade.
In equity news, UK defence group Qinetiq surged on results, while Hexagon shares plunged, snapping a run of market outperformance.
Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com
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