Indexes Up, But Rally Shows Signs of Slowing

(Alliance News) - European stock markets are set to open largely unchanged on Wednesday, after hitting new historic highs in the previous session, though signs of exhaustion in the rally are emerging.

Investors continue to weigh U.S. inflation data, which was broadly in line with expectations and had a limited impact on the Federal Reserve's monetary policy outlook.

In sector news, energy stocks could receive a boost from rising oil prices, fueled by escalating tensions in Iran and the possibility of U.S. intervention.

The Mib—after closing down 0.5% at 45,525.10 points last night—is advancing by 27.50 points.

Among the smaller indexes, last night the Mid-Cap slipped 0.2% to 60,692.95, the Small-Cap lost 0.4% to 37,663.46, and Italy Growth dropped 0.4% to 8,821.87 points.

The CAC 40 is up 21.40 points, the FTSE 100 is up 15.00 points, while the DAX 40 is just below parity.

For some blue chips on Piazza Affari, comments from Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani were encouraging last night: Italian companies, including Eni, he told the Senate, could play a key role in Venezuela. Eni shares closed up 2.2% at EUR16.426 per share.

The market seems to appreciate the Italian government's intention to exit Monte dei Paschi di Siena—up 1.3%—and is rewarding the Rocca Salimbeni stock again today. Nevertheless, the government intends to maintain its role as the architect of a "third banking hub," behind Intesa, down fractionally at EUR5.99 per share, and UniCredit, which rose 0.4%.

The "third hub" project remains fluid. It could also involve Agricole, now the largest shareholder in Banco BPM—down 0.4%—and is causing some discomfort for the government, which had previously blocked UniCredit, accusing it of being a "foreign bank," in the words of Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini.

Telecom Italia—down 1.3%—and Warner Bros Discovery have announced a new strategic partnership for the launch of HBO Max in Italy. Thanks to this multi-year agreement, the HBO Max app will be available on TIMVision.

The board of Unipol Assicurazioni—down 1.2%—has authorized the issuance of benchmark-size Restricted Tier 1 subordinated bonds, to be issued in dematerialized form and settled through Euronext Securities Milan.

Vado has announced a partnership with Nexi—down 1.8%—to integrate the paytech's payment infrastructure into VadoPay, the technology that allows operators to accept online payments without additional hardware or apps, via QR code and digital checkout.

Buzzi dropped 7.2% to EUR50.60. Saipem performed well, up 4.4% to EUR2.71 per share.

On the Mid-Cap, Ferretti, which set a new 52-week high at EUR3.62 per share, signed a strategic agreement with AAA Marine, which becomes the exclusive dealer for the Ferretti Yachts, Riva, Pershing, and Itama brands in the United Arab Emirates and Oman. The stock rose 3.2%.

The Royal Commission for Riyadh City has announced it has awarded the contract for the Red Line extension to a consortium led by Webuild—down 0.3%—together with India's L&T, Saudi Arabia's NESMA, and France's Alstom.

LU-VE—down 1.7%—closed the fourth quarter of last year with annual revenue up 10% to EUR163.3 million. The order book rose 34% to EUR233.7 million.

MAIRE—down 0.9%—announced Tuesday that Nextchem, through its subsidiary Stamicarbon, a licensor of nitrogen fertilizer technology, has secured two contracts in China, leveraging its proprietary technology portfolio.

d'Amico led the gainers, up 4.9% to EUR5.85 per share.

On the Small-Cap, Rai Kids signed a pre-purchase agreement with Mondo TV—soaring 34%—for the second season of Grisù.

OPS eCom has formalized an irrevocable binding offer to acquire Aleo, active in express courier, logistics, and freight transport services. The offer provides for a maximum total consideration of EUR120,000. The stock was up 30%.

Aeffe continued to decline, down 5.8% to EUR0.2865 per share.

Among SMEs, Pozzi Milano—down 0.7%—announced the completion of the merger by incorporation of its wholly owned subsidiary Mascagni Casa into Pozzi Milano.

Circle Group—with sales down 0.2%—has signed a 12-month contract with a major intermodal transport operator for the evolution of the MILOS MTO and TFP platforms, worth around EUR315,000.

EdiliziAcrobatica—up 0.4%—has acknowledged the resignations of statutory auditor Francesco Cinaglia and Raffaella Oldoini. As of today, Carla Borgioli assumes the position of statutory auditor on the Board of Auditors.

Mevim surged by a double-digit 40% to EUR0.17 per share. Intred fell sharply, down 7.9% to EUR9.90 per share.

In New York, during the European evening, the Dow Jones fell 0.8%, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq both slipped 0.2%.

In Asian markets, the Hang Seng is up 0.4%, the Shanghai Composite is down 0.3%, while the Nikkei gained 1.5%.

On the currency front, the euro is trading at USD1.1650 from USD1.1638 at Tuesday's European equity close, while the pound is trading at USD1.3446 from USD1.3429 last night.

Among commodities, Brent is trading at USD65.06 per barrel from USD65.80 per barrel at Tuesday's European equity close, while gold is at USD4,633.35 an ounce from USD4,595.58 an ounce last night.

On Wednesday's economic calendar, U.S. mortgage data is due at 1300 CET and the retail sales report at 1430 CET.

No significant announcements are expected from Piazza Affari.

By Maurizio Carta, Alliance News Reporter

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