Broad Sell-Off, Mib Worst Performer in the EU

(Alliance News) - The Mib suffered a significant decline at midday on Tuesday, posting the worst performance among European indices in percentage terms, amid heightened focus on the Middle East, where the war involving the US, Israel, and Iran has engulfed the entire region.

On the macroeconomic front, Eurozone inflation accelerated again in February on an annual basis, edging closer to the European Central Bank's 2% target. Consumer prices in the euro area rose by 1.9% year-on-year in February, up from a 1.7% increase the previous month.

Domestically, consumer prices in Italy rose at a faster pace than the previous month in February, according to preliminary data released by Istat on Tuesday. Italy's annual inflation accelerated to 1.6% in February from 1.0% the previous month.

As a result, the Mib was down 4.2% at 44,327.99 points, the Mid-Cap fell 3.9% to 56,313.21, the Small-Cap contracted 3.3% to 34,789.44, and the Italy Growth index continued lower by 2.4% at 8,407.78 points.

Other major indices also posted losses: the CAC 40 fell 2.8%, the DAX 40 dropped 3.7%, and the FTSE 100 was down 2.8%.

On Piazza Affari, Lottomatica Group topped the board with gains of 5.4% at EUR21.58 per share and was the only riser in the basket, after releasing its consolidated financial statement project. The company reported turnover of EUR44.70 billion, up 14% from EUR39.2 billion in 2024, driven by online growth, which reached 22% during the year, amounting to EUR945.5 million.

Total net profit for fiscal year 2025 was EUR186 million, compared to EUR101.2 million in 2024. The proposed dividend was raised to EUR0.44 from EUR0.30 last year.

Nexi—down 2.6%—and Google Cloud announced Tuesday the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding to develop next-generation digital commerce infrastructure, focusing on agentic commerce, a model in which artificial intelligence agents autonomously manage the purchasing process and execute secure payments based on received authorizations.

Nokia Corp announced it will partner with the Brazilian division of Telecom Italia Spa to modernize the company's 5G network nationwide. TIM shares were down 7.2%.

Enel fell, with daily losses of 5.9%, as the term of CEO Flavio Cattaneo approaches. The outgoing board of directors recommended shareholders confirm the current leadership, given the achievements reached, but suggested a possible expansion of the board.

Stellantis, down 4.3%, is growing at twice the national average, with a 28% increase in February and a market share rising to 34%. The sales podium is dominated by the group, led by the Fiat Pandina, Jeep Avenger, and Fiat Grande Panda.

STMicroelectronics is boosting its Lombardy hub with a USD6.1 billion investment plan through 2034. The strategy, outlined by manager Fabio Gualandris during a meeting with Mimit, the Region, and unions, aims to transform Agrate into the technological heart of microchips. The stock was trading down 5.1%.

The renewal process for the leadership of Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena is heating up, with shares down 5.1%.

The nominations committee has yet to finalize the "short list" of twenty names to be presented at the April 15 shareholders' meeting. Despite pressure, a decision has been delayed: discussions will continue in the coming hours to reach a consensus by Friday, the final deadline before submission to the board.

Leonardo was down 1.3%, Eni fell 1.7%. At the bottom was Saipem, down 8.2% at EUR3.149 per share.

On the Mid-Cap, PharmaNutra signed a new distribution agreement for France and Switzerland with French multinational PiLeJe, a leader in the nutraceutical market. The stock fell 1.8%.

MAIRE—down 9.2% at EUR13.12—announced that its subsidiary Tecnimont Spa has secured an EPC (Engineering, Procurement, and Construction) contract worth approximately USD1.3 billion for a petrochemical project.

Ariston Holding posted losses of 8.0% at EUR4.518 per share, while CIR recorded a modest gain—the only one in the basket—of 0.1%.

On the Small-Cap, the future of Aeffe, the Romagna fashion valley giant that owns brands such as Moschino and Pollini, hangs by a thread between hopes of a turnaround and an increasingly pressing liquidity crisis. Four offers have reportedly been received, with decisions expected by May. The stock fell 1.6%.

TXT e-solutions, down 2.6%, completed—through its US subsidiary PACE America—the acquisition for USD5 million of the SmartRoutes division from Nexteon Technologies, Inc, following the signing on December 23, 2025 and the fulfillment of conditions set out in the Asset Purchase Agreement.

Borsa Italiana announced that from today and until further notice, it will not be permitted to place unlimited price orders on ordinary shares of OPS Retail, which fell 8.4%.

Softlab consolidated its gains and was up 7.0% at EUR1.23 per share, while Trevi Finanziaria Industriale was at the bottom of the basket with a negative performance of 10%.

Among SMEs, ErreDue—down 2.1%—signed an international order worth about EUR800,000 for the supply of a hydrogen production solution using alkaline technology, with a total capacity of approximately 0.5 MW, composed of two modular units of about 250 kW each.

Circle—with potential losses of 5.0%—increased its stake in Cargo Start Srl, a company active in the development and commercialization of innovative technological products and services for air cargo, reaching a share of 86.44% of the share capital.

Matica Fintec, with no trading activity, announced that Costantino Usubelli has resigned as executive director for personal reasons with immediate effect. Richard Aloysius Kane will replace him as non-executive director.

TMP Group, up 2.6%, announced the acquisition of a new contract in Spain in the food and beverage sector, related to the participation of a major brand at the Alimentaria Barcelona 2026 trade fair, scheduled for March 23-26.

In New York last night, the Dow Jones lost 0.2% to 48,904.78, the Nasdaq rose 0.4% to 22,748.86, and the S&P 500 closed down 1.1% at 25,768.08.

On the currency front, the euro was trading at USD1.1599 from USD1.1678 at Monday's European equity close, while the pound was trading at USD1.3299 from USD1.3371.

Among commodities, Brent was trading at USD83.7432 per barrel from USD78.00 per barrel on Monday evening, while gold was valued at USD5,254.34 an ounce from USD5,293.82 an ounce.

Among the main events on Tuesday's economic calendar, at 1555 CET FOMC's Williams is scheduled to speak, followed at 1745 CET by Kashkari. At 2130 CET, attention turns to the weekly oil inventory data.

By Michele Cirulli, Alliance News reporter

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