(Alliance News) - On Monday, the Mib closed slightly lower after two consecutive sessions of gains and placing the point bar in the 33,400 unti area.

Among the economic indicators, the ifo Business Climate indicator for Germany -- Europe's top economic force -- dropped to 85.7 points in November from 86.5 points in October and below forecasts of 86.0 points as the fall of the government and the threat of trade tariffs by the upcoming Trump administration weighed on sentiment.

The sub-index on current conditions, however, deteriorated to 84.3 from 85.7 and business expectations fell to 87.2 from 87.3.

Thus, the FTSE Mib closed 0.2 percent in the red at 33,427.72, the Mid-Cap rose 0.9 percent to 47,236.04, the Small-Cap gave up 0.1 percent to 26,969.01, and Italy Growth closed 0.1 percent in the red at 7,724.92.

In Europe, London's FTSE 100 closed in the green by 0.3 percent, Paris' CAC 40 gained 0.3 percent while Frankfurt's DAX 40 closed up 0.4 percent.

On the Mib, strength on Banco BPM, which closed bullish by 5.5 percent at EUR7.00 per share. UniCredit -- in the red by 4.8 percent -- announced Monday that its board of directors has approved the launch of a voluntary public exchange offer for all ordinary shares of Banco BPM for EUR10.1 billion, entirely in shares.

For research director of think tank Italia Atlantica, Bepi Pezzulli, "with BPM's assets estimated at around EUR200 billion, the premium is in line with market expectations but raises doubts about a possible premium, considering Italy's economic vulnerabilities."

"Comparing banks of similar size in Europe, these trade at lower price/asset multiples, suggesting that UniCredit is paying a premium that is more strategic than financial. The transaction has potential, but carries risks. It is a strong step toward consolidation, but requires careful implementation to avoid the risks associated with over-concentration in retail banking."

STMicrolectronics, meanwhile, rallied 4.6 percent to EUR24.47 per share, in its third bullish session.

Tenaris--up 0.2 percent--reported Friday that it bought back 6.4 million of its own ordinary shares between Nov. 18 and 22. The shares were purchased at an average unit price of EUR17.5183 for a total value of EUR112.5 million.

Leonardo, on the other hand, gave up 2.0 percent, following Friday night's 0.4 percent loss and with final price at EUR25.00.

On the cadet segment, Ferretti picked up 4.1%, on the heels of the 0.2% gain in the previous session.

Carel Industries, on the other hand, advanced 4.0%, on the heels of Friday night's 3.1% gain.

Tamburi -- in the green by 0.7 percent -- announced Monday that between Nov. 18 and Nov. 21 it had purchased 79,757 of its own ordinary shares for a total value of EUR675,000 or so. As a result of these transactions, the company now holds 19.5 million shares, or more than 10 percent of its share capital.

Banca Generali -- in the black by 0.4 percent -- will unveil its new three-year plan on Jan. 30, outlining the Trieste-based lion's strategy through 2027, focusing on technological innovation, artificial intelligence, and diversification, Corriere della Sera reported in Monday's edition of its L'Economia supplement.

On the Small-Cap, Landi Renzo advanced 7.7 percent to EUR1.97, turning upward after five sessions closed among the bearish.

Eurotech gained 6.5 percent, following up on the previous session's 9.5 percent green.

Among the many bearish performers, Seri Industrial gave up 9.9%, repeating Friday night's 3.1% loss.

PLC gave up 7.0 percent after picking up nearly 20 percent Friday in the close. On Thursday, the company reported that its subsidiary PLC Service had signed an agreement with Sonnedix Italia Operation to manage O&M services on a photovoltaic plant located in the municipalities of Augusta and Melilli, Sicily, with a total rated capacity of more than 80 MWp.

Among SMEs, iVision Tech rallied more than 13 percent after a 1.7 percent green in the previous session.

Comal - in the green by 1.1 percent - reported the signing of a contract with a leading Italian energy company for the supply of a "Sun Hunter" tracker for a 3.48 MWp photovoltaic plant located in Borgo Montello in the Province of Latina. As the company recalled in a note, the "Sun Hunter" tracker is designed and manufactured by Comal in its Montalto di Castro factory.

ErreDue-which is 1.3 percent negative-announced Monday that it has finalized a new agreement with Agrobiofert, a Sicilian agricultural company specializing in the use of efficient and sustainable solutions for citrus, cereal and fruit and vegetable crops typical of the Catania area. The agreement provides for the construction of two electrolyzers worth EUR3.4 million, intended to support production activities in the hydrogen valley to be built at the Agrobiofert plant in Priolo Gargallo, Syracuse Province.

GM Leather, on the other hand, gave up 8.3 percent, after two sessions closed among the bullish by accumulating more than 12 percent.

In New York, the Dow is climbing 0.8 percent, the Nasdaq is advancing 0.6 percent while the S&P 500 is marking a 0.4 percent rise.

Among currencies, the euro changes hands at USD1.0487 from USD1.0395 on Friday in closing European equities. The pound is worth USD1.2560 versus USD1.2509 on Friday evening.

Among commodities, Brent crude is worth USD73.47 a barrel from USD74.90 a barrel Friday night. Gold trades at USD2,638.58 an ounce from USD2,704.60 an ounce Friday night.

On Tuesday's macroeconomic calendar, at 0600 CET Japan's CPI data will be released while a five-year German Bund auction is scheduled at 1130 CET.

At 1400 CET, the US housing market report will be due, followed at 1600 CET by the consumer confidence report.

At 2000 CET, coming up are the Federal Reserve minutes while at 2230 CET it will be the turn of weekly oil stocks.

Among the companies in the Piazza Affari, no particular announcements are expected.

By Maurizio Carta, Alliance News reporter

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