(Alliance News) - Major European indices continued to trade in positive territory on Wednesday following news that the US and Iran have agreed to a two-week ceasefire, contingent upon Tehran fully reopening the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

These reports bolstered the euro and equities across the Old Continent.

Consequently, the FTSE MIB is up 3.6% at 47,086.72, the Mid-Cap has risen 3.7% to 56,626.94, the Small-Cap is up 3.2% at 34,031.88, while Italy Growth is gaining 1.7% at 8,540.55.

London's FTSE 100 is up 2.6%, the DAX 40 shows a 4.7% increase, while the CAC 40 in Paris is climbing 4.2%.

Regarding macroeconomic news, the Eurozone construction sector suffered a further contraction in March due to falling new orders and accelerating inflationary pressures following the Middle East conflict, according to a survey published Wednesday.

The S&P Global Eurozone Construction Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) fell to 44.6 points in March, down from 46.0 in February.

In Italy, the construction sector returned to contraction in March. The PMI fell below the 50.0 threshold, settling at 46.8 from 50.4 in February, as the war in the Middle East added to inflationary pressures.

Furthermore, Eurozone producer prices recorded a decline in February, while other statistics highlighted that retail sales were higher than expected.

Eurostat reported that producer prices fell by 3.0% year-on-year in February, accelerating from the 2.0% decline recorded in January. The figure was in line with consensus forecasts reported by FXStreet.

On the MIB, UniCredit took the top spot, rising 8.5%. Notably, Commerzbank stated Tuesday that it supports "its own existing business," rejecting takeover initiatives by UniCredit. The Milan-based bank already holds approximately 26% of the Frankfurt institution, plus an additional 4% via total return swaps. "Interactions with UniCredit, according to Commerzbank, have not demonstrated sufficient value-enhancement potential for its shareholders beyond the current stand-alone strategy," the German bank stated Tuesday.

Buzzi is up 8.0%. The company announced it has purchased treasury shares for EUR5.5 million.

Rounding out the podium is Stellantis, in the green by 7.6%.

Fincantieri is up 2.3%. Jefferies continues coverage on the stock, upgrading its recommendation to "buy" from "hold" and raising the target price to EUR19.00 from EUR18.10, compared to a price of EUR13.50 as of April 2. Analysts Tommaso Castello, Lucas Ferhani, Cole Hathorn, David Farrell, and Chloe Lemarie emphasize that the upgrade comes "as the stock enters a new growth phase."

The broker identifies a trajectory supported by backlog execution and improved operating profitability in the coming years, with a particular contribution from the Defense and Underwater businesses.

Azimut Holding - up 5.1% - announced Tuesday that it recorded total net inflows of EUR945 million in March, bringing total net inflows for the first quarter of 2026 to EUR4.6 billion. At the end of March, total assets stood at EUR143.8 billion.

FinecoBank - up 5.8% - announced Wednesday that it achieved net inflows of EUR1.95 billion in March, up from EUR767.7 million in March 2025. Managed assets stood at EUR297.1 million compared to EUR393.8 million in the same period last year, while direct inflows were negative at EUR368.9 million from minus EUR52.4 million in March 2025.

Among the decliners were oil stocks Eni, Tenaris, and Saipem, falling between 8.1% and 1.0%, and utilities Snam and Terna, down 0.9% and 0.5% respectively.

On the mid-cap segment, NewPrinces - up 1.8% - announced Tuesday the acceleration of its share buyback program, in light of the current stock valuation and the group's solid financial position. As of March 31, the company held 1.1 million treasury shares, representing 2.6% of the share capital, and may purchase additional shares up to a total maximum of 20% of the capital.

LU-VE - up 5.7% - announced Tuesday that it achieved product sales of EUR151.0 million in the first quarter, a 13% increase from EUR133.5 million in the same period of 2025. The order backlog as of March 31 amounted to EUR300.9 million, an "all-time high," the company noted, up 43% from EUR214.0 million in March 2025.

Salvatore Ferragamo rose 3.4%. Notably, Barclays raised its target price on the stock to EUR5.50 from EUR4.90 per share.

Among the stocks at the bottom, d'Amico, SOL, and Philogen shed between 3.0% and 1.2%. ERG also declined, down 0.9%.

On the Small Cap index, OPS eCom - suspended after a theoretical rise of 24% - announced that the board of directors has modified the company's management structure, a move aimed at the relaunch of OPS eCom and favoring a strategic repositioning.

Specifically, the board appointed Chairman Cosimo Saracino as the new CEO, replacing Ciro Di Meglio, who stepped down while remaining a non-executive director.

BasicNet - up 4.2% - announced Tuesday that it purchased 45,000 treasury shares between March 30 and April 2 at an average price of EUR6.515, for a total value of approximately EUR293,000.

Sabaf - up 3.6% - continues its buyback program. On Tuesday, it announced the purchase of 3,982 treasury shares between March 30 and April 1, for a total value of approximately EUR55,000.

Among the few declining stocks, Gas Plus shed 3.6%.

Among SMEs, Datrix rose 5.0% after announcing Wednesday that L'Oréal Italia has renewed its partnership with Navla, a group brand, to lead Search and Digital Intelligence activities for the next three years.

Cyberoo - up 1.0% - announced the signing of the first multi-year contracts for the sale of the Keatrix platform, marking the start of commercialization for the solution launched at the end of 2025. The contracts, signed with both new and existing clients, primarily involve medium-sized organizations across various sectors, including industrial, agrifood, pharmaceutical, and services.

Siav shed 0.5%. The company announced Tuesday that the shareholders' meeting approved the board's proposal to increase share capital, for consideration and in a divisible manner, for a maximum total amount of EUR5.0 million.

In New York, the Dow closed down 0.2%, while the Nasdaq ended slightly higher, as did the S&P 500.

In Asia, the Nikkei rose 5.4%, the Shanghai Composite advanced 2.7%, and the Hang Seng gained 3.1%.

On the currency front, the euro changed hands at USD1.1684 from USD1.1574 on Tuesday evening, while the pound traded at USD1.3423 from USD1.3442 yesterday evening.

Among commodities, Brent traded at USD93.59 per barrel from USD110.10 per barrel yesterday evening, while gold was worth USD4,819.70 an ounce from USD4,647.18 an ounce on Tuesday evening.

Wednesday's macroeconomic calendar includes the US mortgage report at 1300 CEST.

At 1900 CEST, a 10-year Treasury Note auction is scheduled in the US, followed by the FOMC minutes at 2000 CEST.

At 2035 CEST, a speech by the Federal Reserve's Waller is expected.

By Claudia Cavaliere, Alliance News reporter

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