European Markets Respond Positively to ECB Decision

(Alliance News) - On Thursday, European markets closed in positive territory, on the day the European Central Bank decided to keep interest rates unchanged.

The deposit rate remains at 2.00%, the main refinancing operations rate at 2.15%, and the marginal lending rate at 2.40%.

The Governing Council reiterated that future decisions will continue to be guided by the evolution of inflation outlook, underlying inflation dynamics, and the effectiveness of monetary policy transmission, without committing to a predetermined rate path.

Meanwhile, Eurozone construction output increased by 0.5% year-on-year in October, reversing the 0.3% decline recorded in the previous month.

The Mib rose by 0.8% to 44,463.28, the Mid-Cap gained 1.3% to 58,466.64, the Small-Cap advanced 0.8% to 36,201.98, and Italy Growth climbed 0.2% to 8,481.05 points.

Other European markets were also positive: the CAC 40 and DAX 40 both rose by 1.0%, while London's FTSE 100 was up 0.7%.

In Milan, negotiations between Nexi – up 0.4% – and TPG for the sale of clearing and digital corporate banking services from the Dbs–Digital Banking Solutions division have cooled, for which the US fund reportedly offered about EUR1.00 billion.

Saipem, up 0.3%, is said to be in pole position for a new contract worth over USD5 billion in Qatar. According to Upstream, the joint venture with China's Offshore Oil Engineering Company is the frontrunner in QatarEnergy's North Field Production Sustainability project, ahead of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, McDermott, and Larsen & Toubro.

Campari has reached an agreement to sell the Averna amaro and Zedda Piras mirto di Sardegna brands to Illva Saronno Holding. The stock slipped 0.3%. The deal also includes the creation of a new company to which the Averna and Zedda Piras businesses will be transferred.

The basket was closed by Tenaris, down 2.8%.

Terna – down 0.2% – announced Thursday that it expects to bring around EUR800 million in development infrastructure into operation by 2025, confirming its commitment to strengthening the security and resilience of the national transmission network in support of the energy transition.

Interpump Group – up 1.3% – has acquired 100% of the share capital of FARMA Srl, a company specializing in the design and production of tank components.

Leonardo has begun development and supply of the first four ballistic defense radars, with the stock benefiting with a 4.1% gain.

On the Mid-Cap, LU-VE announced that the LU-VE Nordics cluster has secured a new strategic order in the data center segment in Sweden worth a total of SEK81.6 million, about EUR7.5 million, strengthening the group's position in Northern Europe in high-efficiency and sustainable cooling solutions. The stock gained 1.5%.

Sesa closed the first half of fiscal 2026, as of October 31, with reported net profit of EUR34.4 million, up 19% from EUR28.8 million in the first half of the previous year.

Revenues and other income for the half-year reached EUR1.60 billion, up 12% from EUR1.43 billion in the first half of 2025. The stock was up 2.3% at EUR84.90 per share.

Acea, up 0.7%, through its subsidiary a.Quantum, has submitted a binding offer accepted by Algebris Investments, for the acquisition of up to 100% of Aquanexa's share capital. The transaction value, in terms of Enterprise Value for 100% of Aquanexa, is estimated at EUR205 million.

OVS – up 1.5% – closed the nine months with all indicators positive and an adjusted pre-tax result of EUR87.8 million, up 22% – or EUR15.6 million – from the January-September 2024 period, when it was EUR72.3 million.

On the Small-Cap, Geox on Wednesday approved the 2026 budget, confirming operating margins in line with the 2025-2029 Industrial Plan, although revenues are estimated to decline: the stock lost 0.3% to EUR0.308 per share.

Borgosesia – down 1.4% – has increased the first tranche of its "Borgosesia 6.30%" bond to EUR25 million, just hours after the launch, in response to market interest exceeding expectations.

IGD, up 0.3%, has signed an agreement with Coop Alleanza 3.0 for technical management, property management, and leasing activities on a portfolio of over 40 assets including shopping centers, hypermarkets, and supermarkets.

OPS eCom – down 1.2% – announced the launch of OPS Shop, its new proprietary e-commerce portal designed to offer a "simple, secure, and reliable" online shopping experience.

Landi Renzo surged 10% to EUR1.10 per share.

Among SMEs, Spindox, flat at EUR13.00, announced that BackSpin has exceeded the 90% threshold of share capital, triggering the conditions for delisting from Euronext Growth Milan as part of the mandatory total public tender offer launched by the bidder.

Estrima, up 2.3%, secured an order in a European tender and signed a new commercial partnership agreement for 11 Birò electric vehicles.

Espe, up 1.4%, announced the signing of a new EUR5.9 million contract for the construction of a 9.7 MWp advanced agrivoltaic plant in the province of Reggio Emilia, commissioned by a company active in infrastructure development projects in Northern Italy and already a client of the group.

expert.ai – down 0.7% – announced it has confirmed its consolidated revenue and Ebitda targets for 2025. Specifically, consolidated revenues are confirmed in the range of EUR37 million to EUR43 million, in line with the 2026 strategic plan, compared to EUR27.3 million as of December 31, 2024.

Haiki+, up 2.3%, has resolved to increase its share capital in divisible form, in several tranches and for cash, for a maximum amount, including share premium, of EUR3 million.

Eles – up 1.0% – has received a new order from the Fraunhofer Institute for Electronic Nano Systems ENAS, based in Chemnitz, Germany, for the supply of an ARThpH system with DualPhase technology, destined for the European Test and Reliability Center – ETRC laboratory.

Telmes debuted on Euronext with an IPO worth over EUR1 million: the first trading session was down 14% at EUR1.4968 per share.

In New York, the Dow Jones is up 0.9%, the Nasdaq rises 1.9%, while the S&P 500 gains 1.3%.

On the currency front, the euro is trading at USD1.1737 from USD1.1749 at Wednesday's equity close, while the pound is trading at USD1.3393 from USD1.3392 last night.

Among commodities, Brent is trading at USD60.17 per barrel from USD59.82 per barrel on Wednesday, while gold is valued at USD4,364.70 an ounce from USD4,326.25 an ounce on Wednesday evening.

On Friday's economic calendar, UK consumer confidence will be released at 0101 CET, while retail sales data will be published from 0800 CET.

In Germany, focus will be on producer prices, and at 0845 CET, France's PPI will be released.

Attention turns to Italy from 1000 CET with consumer confidence and industrial sales, while at 1100 CET Eurozone construction output data will be released.

At 1600 CET, Eurozone consumer confidence will be assessed.

Among Milan-listed companies, OPS eCom results are expected.

By Michele Cirulli, Alliance News Reporter

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