(Alliance News) - The Mib remains up along with major European stock markets at mid-day Friday after Istat released data on consumer and business confidence in Italy.

In December, the statistics office estimates an increase in both the consumer confidence index, to 102.5 from 98.1 in November, and the composite business confidence index, to 107.8 from 106.5.

With regard to businesses, confidence improved in all industries except manufacturing. In more detail, market services and especially construction show the sharpest increases, with the index rising to 102.3 from 99.0 and to 156.6 from 151.9, respectively; in retail trade, the index is estimated to rise slightly, to 112.6 from 112.4, while, in manufacturing, confidence is worsening to 101.4 from 102.5.

The FTSE Mib, therefore, is in the green by 0.2 percent at 23,865.92

London's FTSE 100 is in the green 0.3 percent to 7,488.96, Paris' CAC 40 is in the green 0.2 percent to 6,428.48, and Frankfurt's DAX 40 is in the green 0.5 percent to 13,982.70.

Among Italy's smaller lists, the Mid-Cap is up 0.3 percent to 39,490.25, the Small-Cap is up 0.5 percent to 27,732.53, and Italy Growth is in fractional green at 9,177.68.

On the main list in Piazza Affari, Terna is up 0.3 percent. On Thursday, it finalized the second closing for the sale to CDPQ, a global investment group, of Difebal SA, owner of a power line in Uruguay totaling 214 km for a consideration of more than EUR27 million, in line with the terms of the agreement.

The sale of the other projects in Brazil and Peru will be finalized in several stages, consequent to the fulfillment of certain conditions.

BPER Banca picks up 0.2% after announcing that it has finalized the renewal of Bancassurance agreements with the Unipol Group, and in particular with UnipolSai Assicurazioni, for the distribution of life and non-life insurance policies of the companies "Arca Vita," "Arca Assicurazioni" and "Arca Vita International," as well as the so-called "health" products of the company UniSalute.

Eni gives up 0.3 percent. The company reported Friday that Vår Energi, a listed company in which Eni is the largest shareholder, announced a new gas discovery in the Barents Sea, Norway.

The discovery is preliminarily estimated at 9-21 billion cubic meters of recoverable gas-57-132 million barrels of oil equivalent-and has the potential to contribute to future gas supply from the Barents Sea.

Banco BPM gains 0.2 percent after announcing Friday that it has signed a binding term-sheet with Crédit Agricole Assurances SA to form a long-term strategic bancassurance partnership in the property/casualty/protection sector.

100% of the insurance companies is estimated at EUR400 million and for the purchase of 65% CAA will pay Banco BPM EUR260 million.

Leonardo rises 1.6%. The company announced that it has been awarded a contract worth CAD1 billion or EUR690 million by the Canadian Department of National Defense and through Leonardo UK Ltd - Yeovil for the AW101/CH-149 SAR Search and Rescue "Cormorant" helicopter fleet modernization and expansion program.

On the Mid-Cap, Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena is at the bottom with minus 2.5 percent.

Juventus remains among the bullish, up 1.9 percent. Last night it made it known that it had received an "appeal for partial revocation, pursuant to Article 63, of the CGS, of the decision of the Federal Court of Appeal of May 27, 2022, which has become final" from the Federal Prosecutor's Office at the FIGC.

The appeal is linked to the identification of new evidence that emerged after the analysis of telephone and environmental wiretaps, computer exchanges and hand documents that "demonstrate the existence of a system, an organization, a budget planning of buying and selling of players carried out not for technical reasons but for reasons exclusively related to the need to achieve, through artifice, certain economic-financial results," as reported in the petition.

The club, Juventus explains, "will be able to articulate its defenses within the terms provided by the code, trusting that it will be able to further demonstrate the correctness of its actions, the absence of new elements that have arisen that are relevant to the judgment with respect to the decision of the Corte Federale di Appello and the lack of the prerequisites of the proposed appeal."

Maire Tecnimont gives up 0.7 percent. On Thursday it announced that its subsidiaries Tecnimont, KT-Kinetics Technology and Stamicarbon were awarded several new contracts for licensing, engineering services and engineering and procurement activities as well as engineering, procurement and construction, with a total value of about USD280 million.

Its subsidiary Tecnimont was awarded an EPC contract with a total value of about USD1.3 billion and covers the construction of a petrochemical plant and associated utilities and infrastructure.

Fincantieri is down 0.3 percent after announcing that, as part of an EU tender for the Defense and Security sector, it has signed a contract with the Secretariat General of Defense and National Armaments Directorate Naval Armaments Directorate for the construction of a new Naval Hydro-Oceanographic Major - NIOM unit destined for the Hydrographic Institute of the Navy, with delivery scheduled in 2026 at the integrated shipyard in Riva Trigoso-Muggiano.

The contract has a total value of about EUR280 million and also includes integrated logistics and temporary support services for the duration of six years plus four options.

On the Small-Cap, Monrif -- up 2.6 percent -- and subsidiary Emiliana Grandi Alberghi announced Thursday that the sale of the property owned by Monrif, located in Assago and housing the Royal Garden Hotel, to W Property Investments was finalized.

At the same time, the sale by EGA of the business unit involving the hotel management of the Royal Garden Hotel was finalized.

Aeffe opens up 2.1 percent after announcing Thursday that it has signed the deed of merger by incorporation of its wholly owned subsidiary Velmar Spa.

Civitanavi Systems is still on the bottom and gives up 12 percent after approving its 2023 budget on Thursday and announcing an update to its total revenue and adjusted Ebitda target for fiscal year 2023, "to better reflect in the projections the changed macroeconomic scenario compared to what was published in early February 2022," the company explained in a note.

Thus, the guidance was updated by forecasting a total revenue target within the range of EUR42-46 million as of December 31, 2023, and adjusted Ebitda margin of about 29 percent.

Cellularline - in the red by 0.7 percent - announced the signing of a binding agreement to purchase 60 percent of the share capital of Peter Jäckel Kommunikationssysteme, a major German smartphone accessories player.

The preliminary consideration for the acquisition of 60 percent of the share capital of Peter Jäckel GmbH is EUR3.05 million and will be paid upon closing.

Orsero -- up 2.9 percent -- on Thursday disclosed that it has signed the share purchase agreement to acquire 80 percent of Blampin's capital. The company recalls that the consideration for the acquisition of 80 percent of the capital totals about EUR40 million.

On the alternative capital market of Piazza Affari, Digital Value trades in the green by 1.7 percent after announcing on Thursday that it has achieved Oracle Cloud Solution Provider certification, thus accrediting itself among the Italian Oracle Partners that have already achieved this achievement.

Analysts predict that by 2026, public cloud spending will exceed 45 percent of all enterprise IT spending. "Digital Value plays a key role in the execution of complex organizations' cloud strategy due to its robustness and proven technical ability to identify and respond to growing technology demands that impact business objectives and, through Oracle solutions, influence long-term benefits in terms of cost, operational efficiency and user experience," the company explained in a note.

Ecosuntek and Estrima also did well, up 7.4 percent and 4.2 percent, but still leading the way was Eles, with a theoretical rise of 17 percent.

In New York on the European night, the Dow closed down 1.1 percent, the Nasdaq gave up 2.2 percent and the S&P 500 lost 1.5 percent.

In Asia, the Nikkei 225 gave up 1.0 percent, the Shanghai Composite lost 0.3 percent and the Hang Seng closed 0.4 percent in the red.

Among currencies, the euro changed hands at USD1.0617 versus USD1.0599 at Thursday's close. In contrast, the pound is worth USD1.2070 from USD1.2019 on Thursday evening.

Among commodities, Brent crude is worth USD82.63 per barrel from USD81.40 per barrel on Wednesday night. Gold, on the other hand, trades at USD1,797.78 an ounce from USD1,804.05 an ounce on Thursday evening.

Friday afternoon, overseas, at 1430 CET, the PCE index-the Fed's main indicator for measuring inflation-, personal income data and durable goods orders are expected.

At the same time, Canada will release GDP data.

By Chiara Bruschi, Alliance News reporter

Comments and questions to redazione@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2022 Alliance News IS Italian Service Ltd. All rights reserved.