Mib Outperforms Europe Ahead of S&P, Campari Leads Gains

(Alliance News) - On Friday, major stock indices across the Old Continent moved into positive territory, bucking the trend set by Wall Street, which traded lower.

US President Donald Trump today appointed Kevin Warsh, former Federal Reserve governor, as the next head of the US central bank.

In Milan, the FTSE Mib climbed towards the 45,500-point area, buoyed by the release of several macroeconomic indicators throughout the day.

Italy's statistics bureau Istat reported that in the fourth quarter of 2025, Italian GDP grew by 0.3% compared to the previous quarter and by 0.8% year-on-year.

Also on the domestic front, December's unemployment rate was confirmed at 5.6% versus November, the latter figure revised from the previous 5.7%.

In the evening, Italy is also awaiting its rating review from S&P Global Ratings, after the agency confirmed the country's 'BBB+' rating with a Stable outlook in October.

Across Europe, in the fourth quarter of 2025, seasonally adjusted GDP grew by 0.3% both in the euro area and the EU on a quarterly basis, according to Eurostat's preliminary flash estimate.

In December, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in the eurozone stood at 6.2%, down from 6.3% in November and 6.3% in December 2024.

Precious metals saw sharp declines, with gold down 6% and silver dropping 16%.

As a result, the FTSE Mib closed up 1.0% at 45,527.42, the Mid-Cap gained 0.8% to 60,751.11, the Small-Cap rose 0.4% to 37,092.52, while the Italy Growth index slipped 0.1% to 8,772.68.

London's FTSE 100 ended 0.5% higher, Paris's CAC 40 advanced 0.6%, while Frankfurt's DAX 40 gained 0.9%.

Back in Milan, on the main blue-chip list, Campari outperformed all others, closing at the top with a 3.0% rise and nearly 7 million shares traded, bouncing back from the previous day's losses.

Mediobanca also saw strong buying, ending the day up 2.8%.

Intesa Sanpaolo performed well, rising 2.2% ahead of Monday's expected earnings release.

STMicroelectronics stood out, climbing 1.3% to EUR23.83 after Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and UBS all raised their target price on the stock.

Stellantis appreciated by 2.0%, after the company announced it would present its strategic plan during the 2026 Investor Day, scheduled for May 21 in Auburn Hills, Michigan.

The group is also accelerating automation at its North American plants. At the Sterling Heights facility near Detroit, an artificial intelligence-based robot can complete an inventory check in about 90 minutes—a task that would otherwise require up to 280 hours of human labor. The robot, Dexory V2, was developed by UK startup Dexory and is already operational at four of the group's sites.

Recordati, down 0.3%, signed a collaboration and license agreement with Moderna for the global development and commercialization of mRNA-3927, an experimental drug for the treatment of propionic acidemia.

The deal includes an up-front payment of USD50 million and up to USD110 million tied to development and regulatory milestones, in addition to commercial, sales, and tiered royalty milestones. Recordati does not expect any significant impact on EBITDA prior to a potential product launch.

Among the decliners, Ferrari lost 0.8%, while Azimut Holding fell 1.4%.

At the bottom of the main list, Fincantieri dropped 4.0%, with its market capitalization falling below the EUR5.20 billion mark.

On the Mid-Cap, Safilo Group finished the session up more than 13%. The company announced Thursday that its board reviewed the main preliminary figures for fiscal 2025, which closed with sales of EUR983.4 million, up 1.8% at constant exchange rates compared to the previous year.

Another luxury name, Salvatore Ferragamo, also posted gains, ending trading up 4.6%.

Avio surged 6.8% after announcing its board had raised guidance for its order backlog and net revenues for 2025. Specifically, the order backlog is now expected to range between EUR2.10 billion and EUR2.20 billion, compared to the previous forecast of EUR1.70 billion to EUR1.80 billion.

Webuild gained 1.6% after announcing it had been awarded a EUR531 million contract for the construction of Lot 1 of the Strada Statale 106 Jonica, one of Calabria's most strategic roadways, covering the stretch between the Coserie viaduct and the Corigliano Ovest junction.

At the bottom of the mid-cap list, Fiera Milano closed down 1.8%, marking its third straight session in negative territory.

On the Small-Cap, Revo Insurance ended the session up 3.2%, with trading volumes exceeding EUR2 million.

Strong trading was also seen in FILA, though it slipped 1.1% in the week's final session.

At the bottom of the list, Tesmec ended down 4.7%, and Beewize plunged 9.2%.

Among SMEs, Xenia Hotellerie Solution saw good buying interest, rising 2.4% after reporting preliminary 2025 revenues of EUR72 million, up 26% from December 31, 2024, when revenues stood at EUR57.2 million.

Soges, up 5.6%, announced that its board had reviewed the main preliminary figures for fiscal 2025, which closed with revenues of EUR26.4 million, a 58% increase from EUR16.7 million in 2024.

EBidCo, a corporate vehicle indirectly controlled by Xenon Private Equity VIII SCA SICAV-RAIF and managed by Xenon AIFM, announced it had received approval from the Prime Minister's Office for the voluntary public tender offer for Eles. Authorization was granted under the so-called "Golden Power" regulations. Eles shares closed up 0.3%.

VNE's board, up 2.9%, approved the main preliminary indicators for consolidated orders in the fourth quarter of 2025, amounting to EUR3.80 million, an increase of EUR240,000 compared to the same period last year, for growth of 6.7%.

Among the laggards on the alternative index, Redelfi dropped 4.9%, with trading volumes exceeding EUR1.3 million.

In New York, the Dow was down 0.9%, the Nasdaq lost 0.5%, as did the S&P 500.

In currency markets, the euro changed hands at USD1.1880 from USD1.1936 at Thursday's European stock close, while the pound traded at USD1.3721 from USD1.3778 last night.

Among commodities, Brent crude traded at USD69.80 a barrel from USD70.87 a barrel on Thursday, while gold was valued at USD5,003.26 an ounce from USD5,295.34 an ounce last night.

Monday's macroeconomic calendar opens at 0130 CET in Japan with the manufacturing PMI, followed at 0245 CET by China's reading.

In the morning, at 0800 CET, Germany's retail sales are on the agenda. Then, European manufacturing PMIs pick up pace with Spain at 0915 CET, Italy at 0945 CET, France at 0950 CET, and Germany at 0955 CET, before the UK manufacturing PMI at 1030 CET.

Later, at 1100 CET in the US, the OPEC summit is scheduled. In the early afternoon, at 1245 CET in the UK, a speech by BoE's Breeden is expected.

In the afternoon, at 1545 CET in the US, the manufacturing PMI is released, at 1600 CET the ISM manufacturing index is due, while at the end of the day, at 1830 CET, a speech by FOMC member Bostic is scheduled in the US.

Among companies on the Milan Stock Exchange, earnings are expected from Intesa Sanpaolo and Doxee.

By Antonio Di Giorgio, Alliance News reporter

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