European AI Stocks Hit 2000 Highs Despite Iran War Energy Shock

As of May 22, 2026, European AI and tech stocks have surged to their highest levels since 2000, with two TS Lombard AI baskets driving more than two-thirds of the region’s positive equity performance. The semiconductor supply-chain basket has risen ~20% and the AI infrastructure basket ~22% since early April, lifting regional tech ~10% even as the STOXX 600 slipped over 2% since late February. This outperformance comes amid an energy shock from the Iran war and the euro-zone’s sharpest activity decline in over two-and-a-half years in May. Valuations remain attractive at ~28x forward earnings versus ~35x for the Nasdaq, though ongoing conflict risks temper the outlook.