Futures bearish; quarterly growth for MPS

(Alliance News) - European equity markets were headed for a lower opening on Tuesday, as President Donald Trump expressed doubts about the durability of the US-Iran ceasefire after rejecting Tehran's latest peace proposal.

Oil prices extended gains for the third consecutive session, fueling inflation fears and reinforcing expectations that interest rates could remain elevated for longer.

Political uncertainty in the UK also weighed on market sentiment, following reports that dozens of governing Labour Party MPs have called for Prime Minister Keir Starmer to resign after the party's poor performance in last week's local council elections.

On the corporate side, Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena announced on Tuesday before the opening bell that it achieved a first-quarter profit of EUR520.8 million, up from EUR413.1 million in the same period of 2025. Revenue amounted to EUR1.96 billion compared to EUR1.01 billion in Q1 2025.

In this context, the MIB - after gaining 0.8% to 49,664.95 yesterday evening - is currently down by 355.00 points.

The CAC 40 is down 65.00 points, the DAX 40 is shedding 191.00 points, while the FTSE 100 is retreating by 68.80 points.

Among the secondary indices yesterday evening, the Mid-Cap fell 0.6% to 59,748.41, the Small-Cap lost 1.3% to 34,715.39, and Italy Growth closed up 0.2% at 8,916.57 points.

On Piazza Affari on Monday, Eni - up 3.0% - intends to place two new fixed-rate bond issues in US dollars with maturities of 10 and 30 years.

The board of Azimut Holding - up 0.4% at the close - reviewed the April 2026 data, recording net inflows of EUR1.5 billion, 66% of which was allocated to managed solutions. In the first four months of the year, net inflows reached EUR6.1 billion, representing 61% of the annual target set at EUR10 billion.

Fincantieri reported revenue of EUR2.14 billion compared to EUR2.38 billion in the first three months of 2025, a contraction of over 10%.

However, last year's revenue benefited from the effect of the order for two PPA/MPCS for the Indonesian Navy, which became effective in early 2025. The stock shed 0.9% after spending the afternoon in positive territory, bucking the defense sector trend for part of the day.

Leonardo, which recorded a 3.5% decline, announced details regarding the termination of Roberto Cingolani's role as CEO and General Manager, whose mandate ended on May 7 after three years leading the group since May 9, 2023. The agreement includes a payment of EUR4.5 million and no non-compete clause.

In an interview with the Financial Times, European Central Bank Vice President Luis de Guindos expressed opposition to the German government's resistance to UniCredit's - up 0.3% - takeover bid for CommerzBank. For de Guindos, 'it is very difficult for governments to claim they are in favor of the Savings and Investment Union and then say: 'No, we are against this specific operation''.

Tenaris - up 1.9% - entered into a definitive agreement to acquire 100% of the share capital of Artrom Steel Tubes for EUR86 million, net of cash and debt, including a normalized level of working capital.

DiaSorin took the lead with a 5.5% gain to EUR66.70 per share, followed by Prysmian, up 3.2% at EUR156.90 per share, while Avio sat at the bottom of the list with a 5.7% sell-off to EUR29.50 per share.

On the Mid-Cap, Cementir Holding announced that director Fabio Corsico purchased 1,410 ordinary shares of the company. The shares were acquired at an average unit price of EUR14.15, for a total value of EUR19,951.50. The stock gained 2.5%.

Iren - up 0.8% - closed the first quarter with an EBITDA of EUR418 million, substantially stable compared to the same period in 2025, supported by organic growth in regulated businesses, operational synergies, and the recovery of profitability in waste treatment plants.

Webuild - up 0.1% - successfully closed the liability management operation launched in April, strengthening its debt structure and confirming strong interest from international investors. The operation involved the placement of a new bond maturing in May 2032 for EUR500 million and the simultaneous repurchase of bonds maturing in 2027 for EUR121 million through a Tender Offer, equal to approximately half of the outstanding nominal value.

d'Amico fell 12% to EUR8.065 per share, while Alerion grew 8.1% to EUR28.00.

On the Small-Cap, Valsoia - down 1.9% - closed the first quarter of 2026 with sales revenue of EUR26.2 million. The company highlighted the positive contribution of the newly acquired Krepko brand, a leader in Slovenia's traditional kefir market.

The board of directors of Banca Sistema, down 0.8%, deemed 'fair' the mandatory public exchange and purchase offer promoted by Banca CF+ Spa, targeting a maximum of 15.5 million ordinary shares admitted to trading on Euronext Milan.

Tesmec gained 9.3% to EUR0.1618 per share, while Fidia once again closed at the bottom of the basket, down 9.1% at EUR0.0040, its 52-week low.

Among SMEs, AAtech - down 3.4% - signed a 60-day exclusive agreement with Crescitalia Servizi Imprese, aimed at initiating negotiations for a possible strategic, industrial, commercial, and technological integration between AAtech and CrescItalia in the financial services, credit servicing, and fintech solutions sectors dedicated to the real economy within AAtech.

Helyx Industries, up 1.7%, officially filed a PCT Patent Cooperation Treaty international patent application for an innovative smart and connected device for the remote calibration of Hyris bCube instruments.

Lemon Sistemi - up 3.5% - was appointed by Acea Solar as EPC contractor for the executive design and construction of a photovoltaic plant in the municipality of Mazara del Vallo, Sicily. The contract value is approximately EUR4.5 million.

Next Geosolutions, down 0.4%, was awarded a new contract with a leading international client in the subsea power cable sector, as part of a project related to subsea energy infrastructure located in the central Mediterranean. The total value of the contract, developed in two different phases, reaches approximately EUR10.0 million.

In New York, during the European evening, the Dow Jones closed up 0.2%, the Nasdaq up 0.1%, while the S&P 500 also gained 0.2%.

Among Asian markets, the Nikkei is up 0.4%, the Shanghai Composite is shedding 0.4%, while the Hang Seng is advancing 0.1%.

On the currency front, the euro is trading at USD1.1757 from USD1.1782 on Monday evening, while the pound is trading at USD1.3568 from USD1.3651 on Monday evening.

Among commodities, Brent is trading at USD105.42 per barrel from USD103.68 per barrel on Monday evening, while gold is worth USD4,705.17 per ounce from USD4,732.48 per ounce on Friday evening.

On Tuesday's economic calendar, the report on Italian industrial production is due at 1000 CEST.

The ZEW survey on German economic sentiment is scheduled for 1100 CEST, followed by the Italian 12-month BOT auction at 1110 CEST.

From 1415 CEST, the focus shifts to the US with consumer prices and employment data. At 1800 CEST, also from Washington, the EIA will release its short-term energy outlook.

Quarterly results from 15 companies are expected at Piazza Affari, including Avio, Recordati, and De' Longhi.

By Maurizio Carta, Alliance News reporter

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