All major European equity indices posted lackluster performances on Monday, with, for example, a decline of less than 0.1% for London's FTSE and a similar gain for Frankfurt's DAX.

"Despite the holiday lull, the world of financial markets will remain in turmoil," notes Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank, who points to the "impressive parabolic rally" in silver recently.

"Silver prices have soared in 2025, up nearly 150%, and most sector analysts (ourselves included) see fundamentally justified reasons for this," states Societe Generale's commodities research.

Despite Monday's pullback in silver prices, the bank highlights what it considers "a structural shift in the outlook for precious metals amid dedollarization and heightened uncertainty."

Investors are indeed questioning the year ahead, and while "2025 has proven to be a strong year for markets – both in the United States and abroad," according to BofA Global Research, the firm is preparing for greater volatility in 2026.

BofA notes that "the major themes of the past year (uncertain fiscal policy, AI growth, China's overcapacity, record budget deficits, and excess liquidity) are evolving rather than disappearing."

In corporate news, Solutions30 has announced the resignation of Alexander Sator from its supervisory board, effective December 31. Sator had been a member since 2014 and served as chairman from August 2018 to November 2024.

IT services group Aubay stated that its board of directors has decided to reduce its share capital by canceling 96,142 treasury shares, representing about 0.75% of the company's share capital.