Despite the setback in talks over the weekend in Pakistan and Washington's initiation of a naval blockade on Iranian ports, negotiators from the United States and Iran could return to Islamabad at the end of this week, according to five sources.
A climate of moderate confidence is also felt on Wall Street, where futures point to a positive session - with new bank earnings under review - and across oil markets.
Around 1:00 p.m., the Ftse Mib index is up 0.64%, with movements consistent with the evolving geopolitical landscape, namely a recovery in cyclical stocks and profit-taking in the defense and energy sectors.
Trading volumes reached a value of 1.3 billion euros.
Stock highlights:
** Leading the Ftse Mib, AMPLIFON and STELLANTIS are rallying by +4.7% and +2.5% respectively, following yesterday's sharp declines. Regarding the hearing aid group, Barclays expects an improvement in margins with the first-quarter results scheduled for May 5, despite a weak start to the year characterized by substantially flat organic growth in a still unfavorable retail market environment.
** Strong support for the stock indices is provided by banks, which are typically in demand during periods of increased risk appetite. Among the top performers, UNICREDIT is up 1.3% and MPS 1%, the latter on the eve of the shareholders' meeting called to define the delicate matter of new governance.
** The luxury sector, particularly exposed to geopolitical tensions, is resisting the sell-off that hit LVMH in Paris following the publication of quarterly results, which highlighted the impact of the Middle East crisis.
** In Milan, MONCLER is up 1.8%, FERRAGAMO 2.2%, while CUCINELLI limits its gain to 0.4% after having already risen significantly last Friday following its first-quarter sales results.
** Comparing these to the results of the French giant LVMH, analysts at Banca Akros note that, for the time being, visibility regarding the overall effects of the conflict with Iran on luxury goods demand remains limited, further emphasizing the lower direct exposure to the Middle East of Italian companies in the sector.
** In the Oil sector, ENI is down 0.9%, with declines also affecting other energy stocks including TERNA -0.9%, ITALGAS -0.8%, and SNAM -0.4%.
* Among mid and small caps, DANIELI stands out, rising over 5% supported by a 450 million euro contract obtained from the Marcegaglia steel group, which increases visibility for the Friuli-based group's order book.
** Returning to the FTSE Mib, TIM remains stable just above the price of the tender offer launched by Poste Italiane, with analysts continuing to focus on the value creation potential determined by the offer and the possibility of a price hike, although this is already partially priced in by the market.
(Andrea Mandalà, editing Stefano Bernabei)
