Mib opens stable, banks perform well at the start

(Alliance News) - European markets opened cautiously on Wednesday. Washington and Brussels are negotiating after Donald Trump sent a letter imposing 30% tariffs on European exports.

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, speaking from the US, said that "positions on tariffs are still not very close," while Beijing accused the US of "interfering with markets and creating turmoil in the world."

The FTSE Mib opened stable at 39,921.38 points.

On the European front, the CAC 40 in Paris fell by 0.2%, the DAX 40 in Frankfurt lost 0.2% and the FTSE 100 in London gained 0.1%.

On the smaller indices, the Mid-Cap is just above par at 54,959.38 points, the Small-Cap is down 0.1% at 31,825.38 points, and the Italy Growth is stable at 8,282.40 points.

Among the blue chips, Banco BPM leads the way with a 0.8% increase to EUR10.36 per share. Its acquisition by UniCredit has caused a short circuit between Italy and the EU, with the latter ruling in 22 points that the Golden Power implemented by the Meloni government is "contrary to EU regulations." UniCredit shares gained 0.2%.

Unipol recorded an increase of 0.7%.

Mediobanca rose 0.6% after completing the placement of a new six-year senior preferred bond - maturing in August 2031 - with a call option after the fifth year, for a total amount of EUR 500 million.

In the background is the acquisition by Monte Paschi di Siena - whose shares are up 0.2% after Barclays raised its target price to EUR63.90 - for which Mediobanca has accused the Italian government of wanting to influence the public exchange offer.

Terna placed a EUR750 million green bond, fixed rate and maturing in July 2031. The issue received strong market interest, with demand almost five times the offer. The stock gained 0.2% to EUR8.454 per share.

Stellantis was the worst performer, down 3.7%, followed by STMicroelectronics and Iveco Group, both down 2.5%.

On the Mid-Cap, Lottomatica rose 2.2% to EUR24.660 per share.

Webuild announced on Wednesday a new award for Lane, the group's US subsidiary, which has been awarded a USD 337 million contract, equivalent to EUR 288 million, for the design and construction of expansion and modernization works along Interstate 85 in Gaston County, North Carolina. The stock rose 0.7%.

Moltiply Group posted a 2.2% gain, while Salvatore Ferragamo, which Bernstein rates as 'underperform', was down 1.7%.

In the Small-Cap segment, Softlab rose 4.6% to EUR1.24 per share as it continues its dispute with Mimit over worker protection.

Bestbe Holding climbed 5.3% after Watfood announced that it would reduce its stake below the takeover threshold and expand its board of directors.

At the bottom of the table, Mondo TV fell 3.1% and Fidia was down 2.8%, with eight contracts signed and 27,000 shares traded.

Of note is Safilo Group, up 2.2%, which yesterday announced the purchase of 493,000 treasury shares for EUR 512,000.

On the Italian Growth market, Finance for Food performed well, soaring 19%.

ESI announced the signing of five new contracts for the revamping and repowering of five photovoltaic plants located in the Umbria region for a total of 6.5 MWp. The total value of the project amounts to approximately EUR2.9 million. The stock rose 4.7%.

Impianti announced on Tuesday that revenues for the first six months of the year stood at EUR 3.1 million, down 31% from EUR 4.4 million as of June 30, 2024. In addition, the order book for the period amounted to EUR 7.3 million in the first half of 2024, down 17%. The stock fell 4.2%.

Farmacosmo closed the day down 4.3%.

In Asia, the Nikkei closed down 0.1%, the Shanghai Composite was just below par, and the Hang Seng moved into negative territory, down 1.0%.

In New York last night, the Dow Jones fell 1.0%, the Nasdaq rose 0.2%, and the S&P 500 closed down 0.4%.

On the currency front, the euro is trading at USD 1.1619 from USD 1.1611 at Tuesday's close, while the pound is trading at USD 1.3397 from USD 1.3393 on Tuesday evening.

Among commodities, Brent crude traded at USD 68.83 per barrel, down from USD 68.97 at the previous close, while gold was worth USD 3,339.165 per ounce, down from USD 3,340.20 on Tuesday evening.

As for Wednesday's economic calendar, at 1000 CEST, Italy will release its inflation data, followed an hour later by the trade balance.

From the US, at 1:00 p.m. CEST, the mortgage market report will be released, followed at 2:30 p.m. CEST by producer price data. At 3:15 p.m. CEST, industrial and manufacturing production figures will be released.

At 10:30 p.m. CEST, FOMC member Williams is scheduled to speak.

The corporate calendar for the Italian stock exchange includes the results of Saccheria F.lli Franceschetti.

By Michele Cirulli, Alliance News Reporter

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