With negotiations yielding no results so far, the U.S. President has set a deadline for 8:00 PM EDT today (2:00 AM CET), threatening to destroy the country's energy infrastructure overnight should the Strait of Hormuz remain closed.
Despite escalating tensions and a downward trend in U.S. futures following yesterday's positive session, Milanese equities are holding steady in line with European peers. The market is finding support from the banking and energy sectors, as oil prices remain elevated.
By 10:00 AM, the FTSE Mib index was up 0.48%.
On the blue-chip index, INWIT rose 3.7% following results published on Thursday, while STM advanced by more than 4%.
FINCANTIERI also saw strong gains, climbing 3.5% after Jefferies upgraded its recommendation on the stock to "buy" from "hold," raising the price target to 19 euros from 18.10 euros.
Conversely, LEONARDO shed 4.7% amid intensifying rumors of a leadership shake-up and the potential replacement of CEO Roberto Cingolani. Analysts at Equita described such a move as surprising, given the company's performance in recent years and the fact that Cingolani was appointed by the current administration.
STELLANTIS remained weak, dropping over 1%, though it recovered slightly from steeper losses seen in early trading.
Small-cap stock NEWWPRINCES rebounded by nearly 13% after a collapse during the previous two sessions. The company announced this morning that it would significantly accelerate its buyback program, citing the current stock valuation and the group's solid financial position.
(Andrea Mandalà, editing Claudia Cristoferi)
