European markets set for mixed open as caution prevails

(Alliance News) - European equity markets are bracing for a cautious start on Wednesday, with major indices expected to open without a clear direction.

A climate of heightened caution prevails following the stalemate in negotiations between the US and Iran, despite President Donald Trump extending the current ceasefire.

According to press reports, Vice President JD Vance reportedly cancelled a scheduled mission to Islamabad for talks after Tehran informed the US, via Pakistan, that it would not participate in the meeting.

Concurrently, Trump indicated that he will avoid further military action until Iran presents an updated proposal and negotiations reach a conclusion.

On the macroeconomic front, UK inflation rose to 3.3% year-on-year in March, driven by the impact of the war in Iran on fuel costs, according to data published Wednesday by the Office for National Statistics.

Meanwhile, UK output producer prices increased by 2.6% year-on-year in March, compared to a revised 1.8% in the previous month, while recording a 0.9% increase on a monthly basis.

Consequently, the FTSE MIB is called up 0.2% or 102.5 points after closing Tuesday down 0.6% at 47,903.29 points.

In Europe, London's FTSE 100 is expected to open 0.2% lower, the Paris CAC 40 is indicated down 0.1%, and the Frankfurt DAX 40 is projected to rise 0.1%.

In Milan yesterday evening, the Mid-Cap closed down 0.2% at 58,386.65, the Small-Cap gained 0.2% to 35,599.28, and Italy Growth added 0.1% to 8,771.93 points.

On Piazza Affari, Banco BPM announced that its board of directors has appointed Eugenio Rossetti as deputy chairman and defined the composition of board committees, in addition to verifying the independence requirements of directors. Specifically, Rossetti also assumes the chairmanship of the nomination committee, supported by Marina Mantelli and Domenico Siniscalco. The stock traded down 1.6%.

The Moncler shareholders' meeting, which saw the stock close up 0.6%, confirmed Bartolomeo Rongone as a director until the approval of the 2027 financial statements.

National electricity demand increased in March, reaching 26.5 billion kWh, up 2.8% compared to the same month in 2025, according to data released by Terna, which closed down 0.3%. The figure, adjusted for calendar and temperature effects, marks a 2% increase.

Lottomatica Group - which finished at the bottom of the basket, down 3.5% at EUR25.53 - announced its intention to issue and place senior secured notes due 2032 for a total aggregate amount of EUR765 million.

The company specified that the proceeds from the transaction will be used in part for the full redemption, for approximately EUR400 million, of its floating rate senior secured notes due 2031, including accrued and unpaid interest.

UniCredit announced that it will exercise its option for the full redemption of EUR1.00 billion fixed-rate notes. The early redemption of the Securities will take place on June 3, while the stock fell 1.4% to EUR67.01 per share.

Poste Italiane - down 0.7% at the end of the session - "notes with surprise the measure by which the Privacy Guarantor has imposed a fine for an alleged unlawful processing of personal data of BancoPosta and PostePay users."

Tenaris was the day's top performer with gains of 1.7% at EUR25.82, while Leonardo shed 4.9% to EUR55.27 per share.

On the Mid-Cap, Alberto Galassi, the long-standing CEO of Ferretti and a key figure in the group's turnaround, is leaving the orbit of lead shareholder Weichai (39.5%) to join the project of Czech entrepreneur Karel Komarek, who has risen to 23.2% via KKCG Maritime and is determined to reform governance. Ferretti shares were flat at EUR4.10.

Acea has completed, through its subsidiary a.Quantum, the acquisition of Aquanexa from Algebris Investments. As the company noted in a statement, the economic value of the transaction in terms of Enterprise Value for 100% of Aquanexa, based on the current perimeter, is approximately EUR205 million. The stock was bearish, down 1.8%.

NewPrinces performed worst alongside Interpump. The stocks closed the session down 2.6% at EUR17.50 and 3.2% at EUR36.90, respectively. At the top of the list was ERG, with gains of 3.5% at EUR21.74 per share.

On the Small-Cap, Elica - up 3.5% at the close - presented a new range of induction hobs based on proprietary technology at EuroCucina 2026. Specifically, the group has internally developed the new ID Technology, a proprietary hardware and software platform resulting from an investment of approximately EUR2 million and three years of dedicated work by a team of engineers.

IGD SIIQ - which closed up 2.3% - signed a contract through its subsidiary Win Magazin with Dolphin Invest for the sale of two assets located in Ploiesti, a city of approximately 180,000 inhabitants located about 60 km north of Bucharest.

Following its bullish performance the previous day, The Italian Sea Group hit the bottom of the basket with a negative result of 4.9% at EUR1.998 per share.

Among SMEs, Italian Wine Brands - up 3.0% - launched a new share buyback program for a maximum of 15,000 shares, for a total value of up to EUR375,000.

Ubaldi Costruzioni announced Tuesday that its backlog stood at approximately EUR225.3 million in the first quarter of the year, highlighting strong growth in the order book, the company said in a note. The stock was bullish, up 0.2%.

The board of Saccheria F.lli Franceschetti approved the management revenue figures as of March 31, recording revenues of EUR5.4 million, up 25% compared to EUR4.4 million in the first quarter of 2025. The stock showed a contraction of 7.1% to EUR1.31 per share.

Arterra Bioscience, with daily gains of 4.3%, announced that the "Re-Food" project has been admitted for funding and grants under the public notice for the strengthening of strategic supply chains. The project will last three years, and the cost deemed appropriate by the Commission for Arterra Bioscience's portion is EUR720,012.

In New York on Tuesday evening, the Dow lost 0.6%, as did the Nasdaq and the S&P 500.

In Asia, the Nikkei is up 0.2%, the Hang Seng is down 1.4%, while the Shanghai Composite is up 0.3%.

On the currency front, the euro changed hands at USD1.1752 from USD1.1747 on Tuesday evening, while the pound traded at USD1.3526 from USD1.3506 yesterday evening.

Among commodities, Brent traded at USD97.55 per barrel from USD98.16 per barrel on Tuesday evening, while gold was worth USD4,768.87 an ounce from USD4,737.10 an ounce yesterday evening.

Wednesday's economic calendar includes the German Buba monthly report at 1200 CEST, while at 1300 CEST the focus shifts to US mortgages.

On Piazza Affari, results are expected from Gismondi 1754, Sicily by Car, and Vantea SMART.

By Antonio Di Giorgio, Alliance News reporter

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