Piazza Affari veers to the upside after the November U.S. inflation figure marks the largest increase in seven months, but this is unlikely to deter the Fed from cutting rates for the third time this year at next week's monetary policy meeting.

The markets' attention now turns to tomorrow with the ECB meeting, from which, however, investors do not expect any particular surprises either on the rate front - with a quarter-percentage-point cut in the cost of money already taken almost for granted - or on the staff's new estimates for eurozone growth and inflation.

On Wall Street, U.S. index futures are moving higher, portending a positive trend for U.S. equities after the inflation figure.

In Milan, around 3:05 p.m., the Ftse Mib rises 0.6 percent. Volumes of just over 1 billion.

Stocks in focus today

On the banking front, money on big Intesa (+0.65%) and UniCredit (+0.31%). Flat instead, Banco Bpm, after last session's run on the M&A push. Also little moved is Mps.

Cues on Raiway up 2.3% boosted by expectations of a merger with Ei Towers after Corriere della Sera article that the issue could be discussed at the Rai board meeting on December 19 or the first in 2025. Thereafter, Rai and F2i would sit at the table to work out the details of the combination. In the daily Intermonte writes that "the extraordinary dividend could be about 400 million (about 1 per share for current Rai Way shareholders), allowing Rai to collect about 130 million and Mfe about 60 million."

The oil sector recovered as crude oil prices recovered with Eni flat, while Saipem rebounded to +3%. Tenaris remains stagnant, while Maire posts 2.3% growth.

Leonardo rises again after yesterday's decline with growth above 2%.

(Giancarlo Navach, editing Andrea Mandalà)