Spanish and Mexican stock markets fall as oil prices slide and Fed outlook fuels cautious sentiment

The Spanish stock market opened lower and deepened its decline to 0.41%, leaving the IBEX 35 below 19,400 points. The drop came as Brent crude fell more than 1.5% to around $72 per barrel following mixed signals from U.S. and Iranian diplomatic talks, and despite a modest easing of Eurozone inflation to 2.8% in June. Energy costs remained the biggest inflation driver, while Spanish manufacturing activity contracted for the first time in three months, with the PMI at 49.7.

In Mexico, the Bolsa Mexicana de Valores slipped 0.26% to 67,071 points, marking losses in two of the last three trading sessions. Analysts linked the modest decline to expectations of a less restrictive Federal Reserve. The peso gained 0.4% against the dollar, trading at 17.48 per unit. Heavy losers included Walmex, Genomma Lab, Televisa, Gentera and Banregio, while Kimberly‑Clark de México and Grupo Pochteca posted the biggest gains.