(Alliance News) - European stock markets closed in positive territory on Wednesday, with the Mib holding just above the parity threshold at over 40,000 points. This comes on the eve of the ECB's interest rate decision and amid a slightly more relaxed atmosphere in US-EU trade talks.
European Trade Commissioner Maros Šefčovič described his meeting with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer as "constructive and productive," hinting that the EU could secure an exemption from President Trump's decision to double tariffs on steel and aluminum imports to 50%.
On the monetary policy front, a 25 basis point rate cut is widely anticipated after Eurozone inflation slowed to 1.9% year-on-year in May, below both the 2.0% forecast and the ECB's target, marking the first time since September 2024 this has occurred.
This softer-than-expected figure has fueled expectations of further expansionary measures in the coming months, despite some recent hawkish remarks from Governing Council members pushing for a pause in the easing cycle.
The FTSE Mib ended fractionally higher at 40,080.88 points, the Mid-Cap gained 0.4% to 54,458.29, the Small-Cap rose 0.1% to 31,525.12, while Italy Growth slipped 0.5% to 8,086.87.
Across Europe, London's FTSE 100 climbed 0.2%, Paris' CAC 40 closed up 0.5%, and Frankfurt's DAX 40 advanced 0.7%.
On Milan's blue-chip index, STMicroelectronics surged more than 11% to EUR24.93 per share. As Francesco Bonazzi writes for Alliance News, "STM is too small to split in two and there are no separate markets for microchips. For this reason, the two public shareholders, Italian and French, have resumed dialogue after months of a cold war over CEO Jean Marc Chéry's leadership." This comes from direct Alliance News sources, on a day when the stock posted a strong rebound.
"The market, in short, welcomes peace--and strongly so. A peace born from yesterday's meeting between French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, but also from pragmatism," writes the Alliance News columnist.
Campari also performed well, rising 6.4% and rebounding after two bearish sessions.
Prysmian advanced 2.2%, building on Tuesday's 1.7% gain.
Among the minority of decliners, Leonardo fell 2.5% after Tuesday's 1.5% gain, closing at EUR53.14 per share.
Monte dei Paschi dropped 3.4% after two sessions of modest gains, while Mediobanca slipped 2.6%. As Bonazzi notes, "Mediobanca is trying to close ranks ahead of Monte Paschi's OPS, despite a fragmented shareholder base. However, share prices have worked in Piazzetta Cuccia management's favor, widening the gap between the two stocks from January 23 to today, potentially making Rocca Salimbeni's proposed deal--blessed by the government--more expensive."
On the Mid-Cap segment, Alerion topped the list, advancing 7.5% after Tuesday's 2.4% loss.
Carel Industries gained 3.3%, marking its third consecutive bullish session.
On the downside, Comer Industries fell 1.0% after three sessions of gains.
NewPrinces dropped 3.5% to EUR17.86, following Tuesday's 0.3% decline.
On the Small-Cap, Seri Industrial surged over 14%, closing at EUR2.35 per share.
Landi Renzo gained 5.1%, recovering from a 2.3% loss in the previous session.
Zest climbed 4.0% to EUR0.1705 per share after two bearish sessions.
Fiera Milano--up 0.7%--announced Wednesday it has launched a buyback program of up to EUR1.2 million. Under the plan, set to conclude within a maximum of 18 months, the company may repurchase no more than 200,000 of its own ordinary shares.
Among the decliners, Bestbe Holding fell 5.2% to EUR0.12 per share.
Among SMEs, Doxee closed up 7.7% after two bearish sessions, with its price around EUR1.82 per share.
DBA Group advanced 6.8%, bouncing back from Tuesday's 1.5% drop.
Simone--down 1.9%--announced Wednesday it has signed a preliminary agreement to acquire 51% of a newly formed company into which, via a partial demerger of Calamus di Canton e C., will be transferred the business unit related to the "Topipittori" brand. The latter is a children's illustrated book publisher that posted average revenues of EUR1.3 million between 2022 and 2024.
Circle--up 0.9%--said Wednesday it has signed a new contract for maintenance of Port Community System services at a major Mediterranean port. The contract, worth around EUR100,000 and lasting about 12 months, covers management of the PCS services platform, an advanced digital solution supporting the evolution of port and intermodal logistics.
Among the many decliners, Lemon Sistemi fell 2.2%, marking its third consecutive bearish session.
In New York last night, the Dow was up 0.1%, the Nasdaq rose 0.3%, and the S&P 500 gained 0.2%.
In currencies, the euro traded at USD1.1423, up from USD1.1372 Tuesday night, while the pound was at USD1.3563 from USD1.3520 the previous evening.
In commodities, Brent crude was at USD64.70 a barrel from USD65.75 Tuesday evening, while gold stood at USD3,372.62 an ounce from USD3,373.22 the previous evening.
Thursday's macroeconomic calendar opens at 0345 CEST with the release of China's services PMI.
At 0800 CEST, Germany's factory orders data will be published, followed at 0930 CEST by a series of construction sector figures: IHS S&P Global's PMI indices for Italy, Germany, France, and the euro area.
At 1000 CEST, UK car registrations and Italian retail sales figures are due. At 1030 CEST, focus shifts to the UK construction PMI.
At 1100 CEST, the Eurozone producer price index will be released, followed at 1200 CEST by German car registration data.
The spotlight then turns to ECB monetary policy: at 1415 CEST the interest rate decision is expected, followed at 1445 CEST by the central bank's press conference. Simultaneously, at 1430 CEST, the US will release weekly initial and continuing jobless claims, as well as the trade balance.
At 1615 CEST, ECB President Christine Lagarde is scheduled to speak.
Among companies on Piazza Affari, earnings from Netweek and OSAI Automation System are expected.
By Maurizio Carta, Alliance News senior reporter
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