(Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - Milano, 13 mar - European shares closed lower as investors continued to monitor the conflict in the Middle East and its implications on energy costs and inflation.

Oil prices were volatile after Iran's supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, confirmed the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. The move has fueled fears of an energy supply shock and renewed inflationary pressures, keeping Brent prices above the 100 dollars per barrel mark.

But, in an effort to stem the surge in crude prices, the US gave a second waiver allowing countries to purchase sanctioned Russian oil already at sea.

US president Donald Trump also said the US was ready to escort oil tankers through the Strait 'if necessary'.

On the data front, eurozone industrial production fell by 1.5% month on month in January, while the European Union saw a 1.6% decrease, according to figures from European Union statistical office Eurostat.

In Italy, seasonally adjusted industrial output dropped by 0.6% in January compared to the previous month, according to data from statistics institute Istat.

The London FTSE 100 closed down 0.43% at 10,261.15 points, the Frankfurt DAX fell 0.53% at 23,447.20 points, the Paris CAC 40 dropped 0.91% at 7,911.53 points, while in Milan the FTSE MIB shed 0.31% at 44,316.92 points, and in Madrid the.

IBEX 35 closed 0.43% lower at 17,066.32 points.

(RADIOCOR) 13-03-26 18:06:57 (0568) 5 NNNN