(Alliance News) - On Wednesday, at the halfway mark of the trading day, major European stock markets showed a slight improvement.
On the macroeconomic front, Italy's inflation rose slightly in June to 1.7%, still below the European Central Bank's 2.0% target.
Inflation also ticked up in the UK, increasing to 3.6% from 3.4%, while in Spain the figure climbed to 2.3%, surpassing initial estimates.
The FTSE Mib advanced 0.3% to 40,037.73 points.
Among smaller-cap indices, the Mid-Cap rose 0.6% to 55,257.44, the Small-Cap gained 0.2% to 31,908.73, and the Italy Growth index hovered just below parity at 8,277.35 points.
Across Europe, Paris's CAC 40 slipped 0.1%, Frankfurt's DAX 40 edged up 0.1%, and London's FTSE 100 posted a 0.2% gain.
On the Mib, Telecom Italia led the pack, up 1.9% to EUR0.4083 per share.
However, it was the banks that drove the index higher. Banco BPM climbed 1.8% to EUR10.445 per share. The acquisition by UniCredit triggered a standoff between Italy and the EU, with the latter deeming the Meloni government's Golden Power move "contrary to regulation" in 22 key points. UniCredit shares gained 1.3%.
Unipol posted a 1.0% rise.
Mediobanca advanced 1.4% 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 of EUR500 million.
In the background, Monte Paschi di Siena--whose shares rose 0.7% after Barclays raised its target price to EUR63.90--was at the center of attention as Mediobanca accused the Italian government of seeking to influence its takeover bid.
Terna placed a EUR750 million green bond, fixed-rate and maturing in July 2031. The issuance drew strong interest, with demand nearly five times the offer. The stock rose 0.7% to EUR8.498 per share.
Stellantis was the worst performer, down 3.9%, followed by STMicroelectronics and Iveco Group, which fell 1.4% and 2.6%, respectively.
Intesa Sanpaolo announced Wednesday that its Insurance division has expanded its life segment offering with the launch of "Patrimonio Garanzia," a new whole-life policy with guaranteed invested capital, targeting a broad client base up to 90 years of age. The stock climbed 1.1%.
On the Mid-Cap, Lottomatica surged 3.7% to EUR25.00 per share.
Webuild announced Wednesday a new contract for Lane, its US subsidiary, which secured a USD337 million (EUR288 million) deal for the design and execution of expansion and modernization works along Interstate 85 in Gaston County, North Carolina. The stock rose 0.6%.
Moltiply Group posted a 1.5% gain, while Salvatore Ferragamo--rated 'underperform' by Bernstein--ended at the bottom, down 1.5%, followed by GVS, which dropped 1.6%.
On the Small-Cap, Softlab climbed 4.2% to EUR1.24 per share as talks continued with the Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy (Mimit) to safeguard jobs.
Matching that growth and topping the index was Fiera Milano at EUR6.0 per share, after recently exercising its option to organize Tuttofood in Rho until 2040.
Bestbe Holding rebounded 0.6% after Watfood announced it would reduce its shareholding below the takeover threshold and expand the board of directors.
Piquadro reported that consolidated revenue for the first three months of fiscal 2025-2026, ending June 30, 2025, reached EUR36.8 million, up 2.0% from EUR36.1 million in the same period last year. The stock increased 2.1% to EUR2.47 per share.
At the bottom, Triboo fell 3.6% and Tesmec dropped 2.9%.
Notably, Safilo Group rose 0.9% after announcing the purchase of 493,000 own shares for EUR512,000.
On the Italy Growth index, Finance for Food performed well, rising 1.9%.
ESI took the lead. The company announced the signing of five new contracts for the revamping and repowering of five photovoltaic plants in the Umbria region, totaling 6.5 MWp. The overall project value is about EUR2.9 million. The stock jumped 7.5%.
Impianti reported Tuesday that revenue for the first six months of the year was EUR3.1 million, down from EUR4.4 million as of June 30, 2024, a 31% decrease. The order backlog for the period was EUR7.3 million in the first half of 2024, down 17%. The stock slid 1.7%.
Allcore closed the index down 6.0% to EUR1.46 per share, extending its negative monthly performance, now down 5.2%.
TradeLab received approval from the Lombardy Region's Directorate General for Economic Development for a non-repayable grant of up to EUR600,000. The stock saw no trading activity.
Circle--up 0.3%--announced that Magellan Circle signed a new EUR119,500 contract with SVEM, the Marche regional agency, to organize a series of institutional events in Brussels to promote the "Green and Digital Corridor" project and strengthen the Marche Region's position with EU institutions.
First Capital--up 1.1%--reported Wednesday that its subsidiary First SICAF signed a binding agreement to sell 255,000 ALA shares.
Xenia Hotellerie Solution--up 4.7%--signed a binding offer to acquire the hotel and incoming tour operator business units of Italica Turismo, currently undergoing a negotiated crisis settlement, except for the Bellamonte branch.
In Asia, the Nikkei closed slightly lower, as did the Shanghai Composite, while the Hang Seng ended down 0.3%.
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 traded at USD1.1618 from USD1.1611 at Tuesday's close, while the pound traded at USD1.3391 from USD1.3393 Tuesday evening.
Among commodities, Brent traded at USD68.33 from USD68.97 a barrel at the previous close, while gold was valued at USD3,340.22 from USD3,340.20 per ounce on Tuesday night.
Looking at Wednesday's economic calendar, in the US, the mortgage market report is due at 1300 CEST, followed by producer price data at 1430 CEST. At 1515 CEST, industrial and manufacturing production figures will be released.
At 2230 CEST, a speech is scheduled by FOMC member Williams.
By Michele Cirulli, Alliance News Reporter
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