(Alliance News) - Wednesday's midday session continues to be characterized by widespread selling across all major European stock exchanges, following a night that saw another wave of missile strikes involving Iran, the US, and their allies.

On the macroeconomic front, private sector economic activity in the Eurozone indicated its sharpest decline in 18 months, recording consecutive monthly contractions for the first time since late 2024.

Specifically, the Eurozone Composite PMI for May fell again to 48.5 from 48.8 in April, remaining below the 50.0 no-change threshold.

Furthermore, in April, compared to March 2026, industrial producer prices increased by 0.6% in the Eurozone and 0.7% in the EU. In March 2026, industrial producer prices had grown by 3.4% in the euro area and 3.1% in the EU.

In April, compared to April 2025, industrial producer prices rose by 4.9% in both the euro area and the EU.

Consequently, the MIB is down 0.3% at 50,429.47, the Mid-Cap is down 0.3% at 62,334.62, the Small-Cap is down 0.3% at 35,977.66, and Italy Growth is down 0.7% at 9,176.85.

Other European markets are also trading lower: the CAC 40 and the FTSE 100 are both down 0.3%, while the DAX 40 has shed 1.0%.

On Piazza Affari, UniCredit, down 0.9%, has increased its stake in Germany's Commerzbank AG to well over 30% as part of its takeover bid. The Milan-based lender stated it acquired 7.58% of the share capital from Commerzbank shareholders. Adding this to the 26.77% already held, UniCredit's stake would rise to 34.35%.

STMicroelectronics, up 1.8%, introduced a smart vibration sensor designed for industrial condition monitoring applications requiring high precision, reliability, and energy efficiency.

AXA and MPS, which is down 1.5%, approved dividend distributions exceeding EUR270 million from their insurance joint ventures AXA MPS Vita and AXA MPS Danni. Specifically, AXA MPS Vita will distribute EUR211 million to shareholders after closing 2025 with a net profit of EUR86 million, while AXA MPS Danni will pay a dividend of EUR60 million against a net result of EUR52 million.

MPS is also reportedly working on the next stages of the Mediobanca transaction - with Mediobanca down 1.9% - and the completion of its governance. According to sources close to the matter, the board is expected to review the profiles of Gianluca Brancadoro and Alessandro Caltagirone by Friday to fill two board vacancies, pending ECB approval.

Intesa Sanpaolo confirmed its 'buy' recommendation on Avio - down 1.9% - with a target price of EUR47.0, viewing the potential expansion of THAAD and Patriot PAC-3 MSE missile purchases by the US Army as positive.

Analyst Gabriele Gambarova cited reports from Armyrecognition suggesting that the US Army is preparing a significant increase in its air defense arsenal in the fiscal year 2027 budget, with a request for 857 THAAD interceptors and 2,798 Patriot PAC-3 MSE missiles.

Ferrari, down 1.6%, announced a multi-year contract renewal between Scuderia Ferrari HP and Charles Leclerc. Consequently, Leclerc will continue to compete as an official driver for the Maranello team in the upcoming Formula 1 World Championship seasons.

Lottomatica saw buying interest, joining STM at the top of the basket with a 1.6% gain. Also of note is the 2.6% decline for Stellantis, which sits at the bottom of the list.

On the Mid-Cap, Webuild, up 2.4% at EUR2.426 per share, announced that its subsidiary Lane will construct the USD1 billion Ohio River Tunnel in a 50% joint venture with local partner Brayman.

The project is described as 'a new key work for environmental protection in Pennsylvania and one of the main components of the Regional Tunnel System, part of the Clean Water Plan promoted by the Allegheny County Sanitary Authority, which aims to drastically resolve the problem of sewer overflows during heavy rains,' according to a note.

Solid gains were seen for Banco Desio e Brianza, up 3.4% at EUR9.35 per share, and PharmaNutra, up 5.0%, while Comer Industries faced selling pressure, down 3.0% at EUR51.60 per share.

On the Small-Cap, Risanamento is trading down 0.5% after disclosing new developments for the future of the Milano Santa Giulia area, announcing an agreement with the Bizzi & Partners vehicle as part of a potential restructuring of the MSG Heartbeat fund shares, currently held by Lendlease.

Pininfarina - up 1.2% - appointed Gaurav Godbole as Group CFO, while Sergio Grassi was named Chief Revenue Officer Value, Green and Services at Esprinet, which is trading up 0.2%.

Eurotech leads the basket with gains of 5.0% at EUR1.502 per share, while Seri Industrial is down 7.5% at EUR3.545 per share.

Among SMEs, Circle, up 1.2%, signed two contracts totaling approximately EUR250,000 for the evolution of digital systems supporting port rail intermodality.

The agreements cover development activities and management services within a co-funded project, specifically focusing on increasing Extended Port Community System functionalities and strengthening digital tools for port rail and intermodal management.

Culti Milano, which is heading toward delisting from Piazza Affari following the success of the total tender offer launched by Berger International, saw no trading. At the end of the acceptance period, 283,625 shares were tendered, representing 9.16% of the share capital and 84.16% of the shares targeted by the OPA.

Ecomembrane is up 16% at EUR6.70 per share.

In New York on Tuesday, the Dow closed up 0.5% at 51,307.79, while the Nasdaq finished with a fractional gain at 27,093.90 and the S&P 500 rose 0.1% to 7,609.78.

Among Asian markets, the Hang Seng dropped 1.6% to 25,633.21, the Shanghai Composite gained 0.2% to 4,083.97, while the Nikkei closed in the green, up 2.6% at 68,477 points.

On the currency front, the euro is trading at USD1.1614 from USD1.1640 on Tuesday evening, while the pound is at USD1.3450 from USD1.3476 yesterday evening.

Among commodities, Brent crude is trading at USD98.61 per barrel from USD95.50 on Tuesday evening, while gold is valued at USD4,446.10 per ounce from USD4,502.90 at yesterday's close.

On Wednesday's economic calendar, at 1300 CEST, the US mortgage market report will be released, followed by ADP data at 1415 CEST. At 1600 CEST, also from the US, attention turns to the manufacturing PMI, factory orders, and durable goods.

At 2200 CEST, a speech by the Federal Reserve's Logan is scheduled.

By Michele Cirulli, Alliance News reporter

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