(Alliance News) - Piazza Affari closed the final session of the week in the red, with the Mib extending the weakness seen throughout the entire five-day period, despite paring some losses during the day.
Sentiment remains weighed down by the geopolitical landscape in the Middle East, which continues to be the primary risk factor for global energy markets. The escalation pushed Brent crude higher, climbing above the USD90 per barrel mark to levels not seen since April 2024.
The rally in crude oil - which marks a gain of over 20% on a weekly basis - reignites inflationary fears and bolsters expectations of a more restrictive stance from the European Central Bank, keeping the euro hovering around the USD1.16 level.
In this context, the Mib closed down 1.0% at 44,152.26 points, the Mid-Cap shed 0.4% to 56,134.94, the Small-Cap finished 0.5% lower at 34,598.19, and the Italia Growth ended just above 8,478.41 points.
Other European markets also finished in the red, with the CAC 40 shedding 0.6%, the DAX 40 closing 1.1% lower, while the FTSE 100 lost 1.2%.
In Piazza Affari, among a distinct minority of gainers, Eni closed with a bullish candle of 1.5%, following a 1.3% gain the previous day, with the price around EUR20.48 driven by the strength of crude oil.
Berenberg maintains a cautious view on the stock, confirming its 'hold' recommendation and raising the target price to EUR17.50 from EUR14.50, compared to a closing price of EUR20.22 in Milan on March 5.
Fincantieri also showed strength, gaining 2.6% after a 6.1% drop in the previous session.
Analysts Henry Tarr, James Carmichael, and Richard Dawson highlighted that the group delivered a solid operational performance in 2025, but believe current market valuations are relatively high compared to industry peers.
STMicroelectronics retreated 5.1% after two positive sessions. Notably, the stock hit a new 52-week high of EUR28.68 per share during the session.
Nexi, meanwhile, fell 1.3%. The stock saw divergent moves among global institutional investors, with mixed signals regarding overall positioning. On one hand, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board reduced its short exposure to 1.34% from the previously held 1.61%.
Conversely, PDT Partners increased its short position on the payments group to 0.83% from 0.46%, while Two Sigma Investments raised its short exposure to 1.39% from 1.16%, signaling a strengthening negative view. BlackRock also revised its bearish position upward to 0.62% from 0.51%.
Banca Mediolanum - down 1.7% - reported its February commercial results on Friday, with total volumes reaching EUR1.62 billion. Total net inflows stood at EUR1.29 billion for the month, bringing the year-to-date figure to EUR2.01 billion.
In the mid-cap segment, Avio surged 8.0% to EUR36.50 per share. The company announced Friday that Defense Systems and Solutions selected the group for the development, qualification, and initial production of a solid propellant motor for air defense.
Reply advanced 5.2% after a 0.6% loss in the previous session, with financial results due next Thursday.
Technoprobe fell 4.5%, following a 2.6% decline on Thursday evening. Since the start of 2026, the stock has increased its market cap by approximately 25%.
The board of Italmobiliare - with a bearish candle of 5.3% - approved the draft financial statements as of December 31 on Thursday, closing the year with a net profit of EUR55.4 million compared to EUR104.8 million in 2024. However, the board proposed a dividend of EUR1.10, up from EUR0.90 last year. The group reported aggregate revenues of EUR1.75 billion, an increase of nearly 10%.
Heavy selling also hit MARR, which dropped 2.5%, marking its fifth consecutive losing session.
On the Small-Cap index, Italian Sea Group closed up over 12%, bringing the price to 2.13 in its third bullish session.
Ratti advanced 4.3%, rebounding after two sessions in which it lost a combined total of over 10%.
Tesmec - up 0.7% - announced Thursday that it has strengthened its technological positioning by securing two contracts worth a total of EUR71 million with Slovenian railways for the supply of railway network maintenance vehicles.
Aeffe closed down 2.8% at EUR0.24, its third consecutive bearish session. On the MarketScreener platform - based on a single analyst's valuation - the stock is listed with a target price of EUR0.51, suggesting a hypothetical growth margin of 100%.
Among SMEs, Green Oleo saw its price rise 9.1% after a 3.2% contraction the previous day.
Adventure fell 1.6%, continuing its downward streak. The stock has lost nearly 15% over the last five sessions.
Maps - down 1.7% - announced it has been awarded a contract by the Puglia Region for the enhancement and expansion of technological systems supporting health prevention campaigns. The contract provides Maps with a fee of approximately EUR1.3 million over a total duration of 24 months.
Grifal shed 3.3%, following a 5.0% drop the previous day, with a final price of EUR0.88.
In New York, the Dow is down 1.1%, the Nasdaq is shedding 0.8%, while the S&P 500 is retreating 1.1%.
On the currency front, as mentioned at the open, the euro is trading at USD1.1601 from USD1.1562 at Thursday's European market close, while the pound is trading at USD1.3394 from USD1.3300 last night.
Among commodities, Brent is trading at USD90.83 per barrel from USD84.70 on Thursday evening, while gold is worth USD5,147.68 per ounce from USD5,066.00 the previous day.
On Monday's macroeconomic and corporate calendar, producer and consumer price inflation data from China will be released at 0230 CET.
At 0800 CET, German factory orders and industrial production data are expected.
From the US, consumer inflation expectations are due at 1600 CET, while three- and six-month Treasury bill auctions are scheduled for 1630 CET.
On the Piazza Affari corporate calendar, results are expected from Caltagirone Editore, CIR, Digital Bros, Sanlorenzo, and Valsoia.
By Maurizio Carta, Alliance News reporter
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