Milan's stock market opened on a weak note following yesterday's rebound, rattled--like other European markets--by mounting tensions in the Middle East that are driving investors away from riskier assets.
Clashes between Israel and Iran have, in turn, stoked fears of a potential decline in oil supply, which is helping to prop up crude prices.
Around 10:10 a.m., the FTSE MIB index was down 1.1%.
The banking index fell 2.2%, with UniCredit dropping 2.7% and Mediobanca down 1.1%. Other European banks were also trading weakly.
Stellantis stood out with a lively gain of 3.3%, outperforming a largely flat European auto sector index.
Stocks linked to oil prices performed well, including Saipem (+1.8%), Eni (+1%), and Tenaris (+0.5%).
(Reporting by Claudia Cristoferi, editing by Francesca Piscioneri)
