President Donald Trump's latest U-turn came yesterday after Friday's announcement of 50% customs duties on EU goods from June caused markets to plummet.
The FTSE MIB rose 1.2% around 12.10 p.m., with thin volumes of less than €1 billion, partly due to the closure of Wall Street for Memorial Day.
Among the stocks in the spotlight:
As in Europe, purchases are concentrated in sectors most sensitive to US trade policies, such as the automotive sector. Brembo, Stellantis, and Iveco are the best performers on the main index, with gains of around 3%.
The defense sector also continues to attract investors in a geopolitical climate that offers little hope for the resolution of conflicts. Leonardo is up 2.6%, while Fincantieri is buoyant (+4.3%) after recently drawing attention to its Underwater business.
European tech stocks are doing well, with STM up 2.4%, and banks are buoyant (+1.5% on the Italian index), helped by Moody's decision on Friday evening to raise its outlook on Italian debt from stable to positive.
(Claudia Cristoferi, editing Andrea Mandalà)
