Piazza Affari opened on a positive note, led in particular by gains in Stellantis and banking stocks.

Investor attention is focused on statements expected later today from European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde, as markets seek clues about the direction of interest rates.

Market participants are also looking ahead to next week's Federal Reserve meeting, where an interest rate cut of 25 basis points is now priced in at 85%.

The calendar is also rich with macroeconomic data. Key releases include the ADP report on U.S. private sector employment for November--expected to slow to 10,000 new jobs from 42,000 the previous month--and the ISM services survey. Later in the week, attention will shift to September's Core PCE numbers, which were postponed due to the government shutdown.

Around 9:40 a.m., the FTSE Mib index was up 0.50%.

STELLANTIS surged by around 7% on reports, cited by sources speaking to Reuters, that the Trump administration is ready to propose a significant scaling back of fuel consumption standards set last year by former President Joe Biden. The move is part of the current administration's latest initiative to ease the sale of gasoline-powered vehicles by automakers. The proposal is expected to be presented in the presence of executives from GM, Ford, and Stellantis.

DOVALUE jumped by about 5% following the announcement of a new strategic agreement with Banco Santander for the management of new NPL flows in Spain, effective January 1, 2026, with an initial term of two years. "The news is marginally positive and in line with management guidance during the third-quarter call," Equita wrote in its daily note.

Banking stocks also performed well, led by MPS, which rebounded 1.4% after four consecutive negative sessions. The recent downturn began last Thursday when news of an investigation emerged. Among the major banks, INTESA fell 0.3%, while UNICREDIT gained 0.25%.

The high-tech sector was also well bid following a rally in Tokyo this morning, with STM up 4%.

Oil services stocks saw inflows, with SAIPEM and TENARIS both gaining 1.6%.

ITALGAS and BUZZI both slipped after rating downgrades. Morgan Stanley cut its rating on the former to 'equal weight' from 'overweight,' while JP Morgan downgraded the latter to 'neutral' from 'overweight' but raised its target price to EUR58 from EUR54.

(Giancarlo Navach, editing by Antonella Cinelli)