[MARKET ANALYSIS] European bourses mixed, with Spanish assets outperforming given its exposure to Brazil

European bourses start the week mixed, with Spain's IBEX 35 outperforming (see more below) while France's CAC 40 lags following recent M&A and broker updates in the luxury sector. Sectors highlight a positive bias. Chemicals lead, with Optimised Personal Care and Food, Beverages & Tobacco following, while Industrials is the only sector in the red. Focus over the weekend was on the Brazilian Presidential election, in which Bolsonaro took a surprise lead over current President Lula in the first round, taking around 47% of votes against Lula's 45%. Brazilian equities are expected to surge on the open, with Petrobras and Embraer ADRs higher by 9% and 5% pre-market, as Bolsonaro is more likely to address Brazil's worsening fiscal situation. As an indicator, Spanish equities that have large exposure to Brazil have benefited (Telefonica +2.1%, Santander +2.7%). Another focus for Spanish assets is the PM's call for a snap election. This was widely speculated given the failure to pass a housing plan through the government last week. Other key stories include: Schneider Electric -8%, acquires PTC for around USD 22.6bln; Air Liquide +2.4%, targets sales CAGR of 5% annually and plans a EUR 4bln share buyback programme over the 2027/28 period; BT Group +1.8%, purchases TalkTalk Telecommunications and PlatformX Communications for around GBP 400mln; Akzo Nobel +3.1%, sells its South East Decorative Paints business to Nippon Paint for USD 1.35bln. US equity futures are mixed but essentially flat across the board. Focus remains on chipmakers, with Culpium reporting that TSMC is exploring a potential partnership with Terafab, which could include a new fab in Texas. Overnight, TSMC shares rose 3% on this, with Musk later confirming that talks are ongoing.