(Alliance News) - Piazza Affari closed in a heavy red on Monday, with the Mib repositioning the bar at 26,100. Banks were the biggest bearish driver, despite the U.S. authorities' decision to support the banking system after the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, as well as that of Signature Bank this weekend.

On Monday in the CME Group platform's FedWatch Tool -- using futures also based on the actual federal funds rate, or EFFR -- the main rate hike for the March 22 meeting has a 28 percent probability priced into the 475/500 bps range. In contrast, the probability of an increase in the 500/525 bps area is at 72%. The current target is between 450 and 475 bps.

The FTSE Mib, therefore, closed down 4.0 percent at 26,183.54 with the day's low at 25,994.81.

Among the smaller listings, the Mid-Cap closed down 3.4 percent to 42,266.05, the Small-Cap gave up 1.6 percent to 29,686.98, and Italy Growth finished 1.8 percent in the red at 9,268.68.

In Europe, Paris' CAC 40 closed down 2.9 percent, London's FTSE 100 gave up 2.6 percent, and Frankfurt's DAX 40 ended 3.0 percent in the red.

On the Mib, among the few bullish performers was Italgas, in the green by 1.1 percent to EUR5.2950, on the heels of Friday's 1.6 percent gain.

Leonardo closed in the green by 0.1 percent at EUR11.03. Kepler Chevreux raised its target price on the stock to EUR13.00 from EUR11.60.

Bankers ended at the bottom with BPER Banca in the red 9.5 percent, Banco BPM down 8.1 percent and Intesa Sanpaolo down 6.1 percent. FinecoBank is also down 6.3%. UniCredit gave up 9.0%, while Mediobanca lost 4.9% instead.

FinecoBank also announced on Friday that it has received an updated decision from the Single Resolution Board and the Bank of Italy on the determination of the minimum requirement of own funds and eligible liabilities, which replaces the previous decision communicated in August 2021. As of January 1, 2024, FinecoBank will have to comply on a consolidated basis with an MREL requirement of 18.91 percent of TREA - 21.45 percent inclusive of the Combined Buffer Requirement and equal to 5.25 percent of the LRE, ensuring a linear increase in own funds and eligible liabilities to achieve the requirements.

Poste Italiane - which is back 4.0% - announced Friday a strategic partnership with Deutsche Post DHL Group for the Italian and international parcel market.

Significant selling also on Saipem, which contracted 7.3% pending results due Tuesday.

On the Mid-Cap, major declines, also in this segment, for bankers. Banca Popolare di Sondrio gives up more than 10 percent, Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena closed 7.3 percent in the red, while Credito Emiliano is down 7.5 percent. On Friday it announced that it and Credemholding had signed the new EUR5 billion EMTN program.

De' Longhi--down 3.0%--reported Monday that it ended 2022 with a net profit nearly halved from the previous year, to EUR177.4 million from EUR311.1 million. Revenues fell 2.0 percent year-on-year to EUR3.16 billion from EUR3.22 billion, with the net industrial margin falling to EUR1.49 billion from EUR1.60 billion.

Datalogic's consolidated revenues - in the red by more than 10 percent - rose 9.5 percent in 2022, the company disclosed Thursday, hitting EUR654.6 million compared to EUR597.8 million realized as of Dec. 31, 2021; at constant exchange rates, revenues are up 4.4 percent.

Good session, among the few, for Cembre, which advanced 2.1 percent after the 2.3 percent red with which it closed the previous session.

On the Small, LVenture Group closed in the green by 6.6 percent after announcing, together with Digital Magics--in the green by 0.3 percent on Italy Growth--that it has mandated LVG CEO Luigi Capello and DM executive chairman Marco Gay to sign a non-binding term-sheet dealing with the integration of the two companies, which is expected to be achieved through a merger by incorporation of DM into LVG.

Also doing well was Ratti, which, after ending the previous two sessions in the red, rallied 3.4 percent.

At the bottom, Trevi Finanziaria Industriale gave up 6.5 percent after Friday night's timid 0.3 percent gain.

Tesmec, on the other hand, left 7.7 percent on the parterre, with price at EUR0.1634 after the previous session's timid 0.1 percent gain.

Among PMIs, Energy gave up 8.7%, ending for the third session in a row on the bearish side.

Cyberoo gave up 6.4 percent, following up Friday's red with 2.9 percent.

Masi Agricola gives up 1.4 percent after reporting Friday that it saw double-digit growth in 2022 revenues but that net income fell year-over-year, leading the board to reduce the dividend from the one it paid last year. The company's net income dropped to EUR4.5 million in 2022 from EUR5.4 million in 2021, and the board proposed to shareholders to distribute a dividend of EUR0.06 per share compared to EUR0.08 per share in the previous year.

Technoprobe gives up 2.7 percent after reporting, with reference to the events surrounding Silicon Valley Bank Financial Group, that its exposure to SVB Financial Group represents about 2.5 percent of the company's cash and cash equivalents as of Dec. 31, 2022. Technoprobe has no other current accounts or lines of credit with SVB Financial Group and therefore considers the exposure immaterial.

Sciuker Frames--in the red by 2.5 percent--reported that it has entered into a partnership with Deutsche Bank Easy that allows it to replace invoice discounting with no impact on customers. Under a new Decree-Law, customers are not allowed to request the invoice discount as a payment method for 50 percent of the invoice; therefore, for all new orders, the customer would be left with the only option of paying the entire invoice and then using the related credit generated over 10 years, deducting it from their annual fee amount paid.

In New York, the Dow is in the green by 0.3 percent, the Nasdaq in the green by 1.2 percent, and the S&P 500 is up 0.3 percent.

Among currencies, the euro changes hands at USD1.0736 versus USD1.0658 at Friday's close. In contrast, the pound is worth USD1.2155 from USD1.2045 on Friday evening.

Among commodities, Brent crude is worth USD81.06 per barrel versus USD81.92 per barrel Friday night. Gold, on the other hand, trades at USD1,906.38 an ounce from USD1,856.97 an ounce at Friday's close.

On Tuesday's economic calendar, at 0800 CET the UK unemployment rate is expected, at 1000 CET it is the turn of Italian industrial production, and, also from Italy, at 1110 CET there is the auction of BTPs with three- and seven-year maturities.

At 1330 CET from the US comes the CPI, at 2130 CET weekly oil stocks, and, at 2220 CET, FOMC member Bowman's speech.

On the packed corporate calendar, coming up, among many, are the results of Biesse, Cembre, Culti, MARR, Orsero, Saipem, Sanlorenzo, Servizi Italia, and Unidata.

By Maurizio Carta, Alliance News reporter

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