(Alliance News) – European markets continued to feel the chill from Middle Eastern uncertainties on Thursday. As the bombardments between Israel and Iran persist, the US has yet to clarify its stance on direct intervention in Tehran.
Attention is also focused on Iran’s next moves, with reports suggesting it is considering blocking the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial passage for liquefied natural gas shipments from Qatar and Oman.
On the monetary front, the Bank of England left interest rates unchanged, mirroring the decision made by the Federal Reserve on Wednesday evening.
Among Italian indices, the FTSE Mib slipped, closing down 1.2% at 38,942.19 points. The Mid-Cap fell 1.3% to 52,845.14, the Small-Cap lost 1.4% to 30,555.89, while the Italy Growth index edged up 0.1% to 8,122.85.
Major European exchanges also ended in negative territory, with Frankfurt’s DAX down 1.1%, Paris’ CAC losing 1.3%, and London’s FTSE 100 declining by 0.6%.
Axel Rudolph, Senior Technical Analyst at IG, commented: “While the Federal Reserve and the Bank of England kept interest rates steady, the Swiss National Bank and Norges Bank cut rates by 25 basis points. The former lowered rates to zero for the first time since late 2022, when rates were negative, while the latter cut for the first time in five years, amid easing inflationary pressures and weakening global economic prospects. The BoE, however, took a more cautious stance, expecting inflation to remain at current levels for the rest of the year before returning to its 2% target next year.”
The analyst continued: “Ongoing missile strikes between Israel and Iran and the potential for US involvement have heightened fears of supply disruptions, pushing oil and gas prices to four-month highs. Equity indices have declined, while gold prices have remained flat, and silver and copper prices have fallen by about one percentage point amid uncertainty.”
Back in Milan, Italgas led the pack at Piazza Affari, rising 0.7%. Terna also performed well, up 0.6%, while Eni rounded out the top three with a 0.6% gain.
On Thursday, Eni announced it had reached an agreement with Microsoft Corp aimed at developing strategic initiatives for the company’s digital transformation. The current industrial plan includes EUR2.4 billion in commitments for digital transformation.
In banking sector moves, the European Commission on Thursday approved, under EU merger regulations, UniCredit’s planned acquisition of Banco BPM. UniCredit shares dropped 2.0% to EUR55.35, while Banco BPM fell 3.0% to EUR9.81.
Among the decliners, Leonardo – down 2.1% to EUR47.14 – and Airbus announced a joint architecture study on NATO’s NH90 helicopter.
Saipem reported Thursday that it had secured a Front End Engineering Design contract from Sonatrach for the Phosphate Integrated project in Algeria, aimed at producing fertilizers. At full capacity, the project is expected to produce 6 million tonnes of fertilizer annually. The stock closed down 0.5% at EUR2.398.
Intesa Sanpaolo – down 1.5% – along with Fine Foods & Pharmaceuticals, announced the finalization of EUR30 million in financing for the expansion of the Pharma BU production facility in Brembate, Bergamo, launched at the end of 2023. Fine Foods closed up 0.3% on the Small-Cap index.
Mediobanca also declined, down 1.9% to EUR18.96, after buying back over EUR4 million in its own shares on Thursday.
According to press reports, Prysmian has announced a new USD500 million investment to expand its Texas plant, with a new 60,000-square-meter facility dedicated to medium-voltage cables set to be operational in 2027 and create 120 new jobs. The stock fell 1.1% to EUR55.70.
Luxury brands closed the list in the red, with Brunello Cucinelli down 2.2% and Moncler dropping 3.5% to the bottom.
Among mid-caps, Garofalo Health Care rose 1.8% to EUR5.2 per share.
Juventus FC, slightly down 0.5% to EUR3.04 per share, announced it had extended its technical partnership with Adidas for the next ten years, securing a fixed income of EUR408 million.
Among the losers, TXT Solutions shed 3.1%, while MAIRE fell 3.6%.
On the Small-Cap index, Class Editori – with 5.2% of shares held by Francesco Gaetano Caltagirone, according to Consob – outperformed all, surging 11% to EUR0.1615.
Gas Plus also saw significant gains, up 5.2% to EUR5.08 per share.
Met.Extra Group collapsed by 50% to EUR1.73 per share.
Among SMEs, Adventure performed well with a 3.9% rise, while Convergenze led the way, gaining 7.9% to EUR1.91 after completing a buyback plan for a total of 171,000 shares.
FOS reported Thursday that FOS Holding, indirectly controlled by Daniel Pacault, FOS chairman, purchased 40,500 company shares for over EUR140,000. The stock was flat at EUR3.54.
Metriks AI announced its buyback program. The stock closed unchanged at EUR2.23 per share.
Alfonsino – up 3.5% to EUR0.268 – announced Thursday the signing of an exclusive agreement with Superò, a major retail brand, to launch grocery delivery service initially at one store, starting June 25.
A new patent for the 50Kw monoblock boosted IMD International Medical Devices by 0.7% to EUR1.39 per share.
US markets remained closed for the Juneteenth holiday.
In currency markets, the euro traded at USD1.1470 versus USD1.1507 on Wednesday evening, while the pound exchanged at USD1.3428 compared to USD1.3452 in the previous session.
In commodities, Brent crude traded at USD78.37 per barrel, up from USD76.7 previously, while gold was valued at USD3,365.775 per ounce, down from USD3,369.15 at the prior close.
Friday’s economic calendar features the UK consumer confidence index at 0101 CEST, followed by the JPY consumer confidence index at 0130 CEST.
At 0315 CEST, China’s PBoC prime lending rate is scheduled.
At 0800 CEST, the UK’s monthly and annual retail sales report and the German producer price index will be released.
At 1000 CEST, the ECB’s monthly report will be published, followed by the Eurogroup meeting at 1200 CEST.
Across the Atlantic, at 1430 CEST, Canada’s retail sales data and the Philadelphia Fed economic conditions index in the US are due.
At Piazza Affari, Zucchi will present results.
By Michele Cirulli, Alliance News Reporter
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