Markets Expected to Open Higher; Focus on Ukraine Peace Talks

(Alliance News) - On Monday, major European stock markets are expected to open in positive territory on the first day of the second short week at the end of 2025, in the midst of the Christmas holidays, as peace talks on Ukraine continue and gold remains at record highs.

In Asia, China announced that it has begun live-fire military exercises around Taiwan, just hours after declaring "major" drills in the waters and airspace near the self-governing democratic island.

Beijing's military is "deploying destroyers, frigates, fighter jets, bombers, and unmanned aerial vehicles" in Monday's drills, which include "live-fire training on maritime targets to the north and southwest of Taiwan," according to a statement from the Eastern Theater Command of the People's Liberation Army.

According to IG futures, the FTSE Mib is set to open up by 0.1% or 55.4 points, after closing just above parity at 44,606.58.

Paris's CAC 40 is expected to open slightly lower, down 4.4 points, Frankfurt's DAX 40 is forecast to rise by 0.1% or 27.8 points, and London's FTSE 100 is seen climbing by 0.1% or 7.6 points.

Among Milan's secondary indices, on Tuesday before the Christmas break, the Mid-Cap fell by 0.3% to 58,545.45, the Small-Cap lost 0.6% to 36,400.05, while Italy Growth rose by 0.1% to 8,523.05.

On Tuesday the 23rd, on the Mib, Fincantieri showed strength, rising by 2.0%, marking its fourth consecutive bullish session.

Italgas also performed well, gaining 1.5% to EUR9.40 per share, after a 0.6% loss in the previous session.

Banca Monte dei Paschi also had a good session, up 0.7%, after a 1.3% loss the previous day that ended a seven-session winning streak.

UniCredit – up 0.1% – announced on Monday that it had bought back nearly 1.3 million of its own ordinary shares between December 15 and 19, for a total value of around EUR89.3 million.

Saipem – down 2.1% after a strong previous session – reported on Monday that it had repurchased 17 million of its own ordinary shares between December 16 and 19. The shares were bought at an average unit price of EUR2.334096, for a total value of EUR39.7 million.

On the Mid-Cap, RCS advanced 3.2%, following a 0.1% gain in the previous session.

Safilo rose by 0.4%, adding to the 2.9% increase from the previous day, with the price around EUR1.89.

CIR – up 0.4% – announced on Monday that it had bought back 340,000 of its own ordinary shares between December 15 and 19, for a total value of about EUR241,000.

doValue – down 1.8% – announced Tuesday the launch of Lounge, a new contribution fund focused on loans guaranteed by the MCC Guarantee Fund, created in partnership between the group's alternative asset management company, Gardant Investor SGR, and three Italian banks. As the company explained in a note, the initial contribution amounts to about EUR200 million in gross book value of non-performing loans.

On the Small-Cap, Aeffe closed up more than 14%, following a double-digit gain the previous day.

Landi Renzo rose by 0.9% to EUR1.12, after a 2.6% drop the previous day with the price at EUR1.1280 per share.

IRCE – flat at EUR2.06 – announced on Monday that it had signed an investment agreement on December 18 with SIMEST to support its Chinese subsidiary IRCE Electromagnet Wire (Jiangsu), as part of the group's expansion project in China. The agreement provides for a total financial intervention of EUR6 million, covered by SACE guarantee, with a duration of five years until December 31, 2030.

Esprinet, on the other hand, fell by 5.2%, after three consecutive sessions among the gainers.

Among SMEs, Edgelab gained over 13%, marking its fifth consecutive session in positive territory.

H-Farm also performed well, climbing 4.4% to EUR0.1880. During trading, the stock reached a new 52-week high at EUR0.1940.

SG Company – up 3.3% – announced that Geotag, 51% controlled by the company, has signed a binding agreement to acquire 100% of the share capital of Waymedia. The closing of the transaction is expected by the end of January 2026.

SolidWorld Group – down 2.1% – announced Tuesday that it is continuing the implementation of the rationalization and efficiency plan launched in the second half of 2025, with the third phase of the group's reorganization involving the integration of Solid Energy Real Estate.

In New York, on Friday, December 26, the Dow closed marginally lower at 48,710.97, while the Nasdaq ended down 0.1% at 23,593.10 and the S&P 500 finished slightly below parity at 6,929.94.

Among Asian markets, the Hang Seng is down 0.6%, the Shanghai Composite closed slightly higher at 3,965.28, while the Nikkei lost 0.4% to 50,526.92.

On the currency front, the euro is trading at USD1.1776 from USD1.1772 in the previous session, while the pound is trading at USD1.3493 from USD1.3500.

Among commodities, Brent is trading at USD60.84 per barrel from USD60.24 in the previous session, while gold is valued at USD4,492.45 an ounce from USD4,552.70.

On Monday's economic calendar, after the Christmas break, the US crude oil inventory report and the Cushing, USA inventory are due at 1630 CET.

No significant corporate announcements are expected.

By Claudia Cavaliere, Alliance News reporter

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