Mib Down; Cucinelli Leads Gains, MPS Slides

(Alliance News) - On Friday, major European stock exchanges opened the session mixed, with Milan's Piazza Affari dropping below the 43,200-point mark while London was the only market trading in positive territory.

Across the continent, France's economy accelerated by 0.5% in the third quarter, while inflation is expected to remain steady at 0.9% in November. In Germany, meanwhile, retail sales saw a slight decline in October.

In the United States, the probability that the Federal Reserve will cut rates at its December meeting has risen above 80%, with expectations for further monetary easing in 2026.

In this context, the Mib slipped 0.1% to 43,199.15, the Mid-Cap was slightly below par at 58,289.94, the Small-Cap gained 0.1% to 35,645.06, and Italy Growth was up 0.3% at 8,390.08 points.

The CAC 40 was down 0.1%, the DAX 40 dropped 0.2%, and the FTSE 100 posted a 0.2% gain.

On Piazza Affari, the index was driven by luxury stocks, with Brunello Cucinelli up 2.3% and Moncler rising 1.5%.

Leonardo--up 0.3%--unveiled Michelangelo Dome, its new advanced integrated defense system designed to address emerging threats in an increasingly complex global scenario.

During a parliamentary hearing on the Golden Power procedure, UniCredit CEO Andrea Orcel strongly reaffirmed the group's Italian identity, noting that about 45% of the group's balance sheet is allocated to Italy and that UniCredit--down 0.5%--holds around EUR40 billion in Italian government bonds, more than any other bank.

In banking sector developments, Banca Monte dei Paschi and Mediobanca fell 0.7% and 0.2%, respectively. According to Corriere della Sera, entrepreneur Francesco Gaetano Caltagirone, Luxottica chairman and Delfin holding president Francesco Milleri, and Monte dei Paschi di Siena CEO Luigi Lovaglio are under investigation by the Milan Prosecutor's Office for alleged market manipulation and obstruction of supervisory authorities. Investigators allege they coordinated the EUR13.5 billion public exchange offer, which garnered 62% participation on the stock market.

Tensions between Stellantis--down 0.2%--and the Canadian government are escalating. At the center of the dispute is the failure to convert the Brampton, Ontario plant to electric production and the Windsor gigafactory project by NextStar Energy, a joint venture between Stellantis and LG, with a total investment of USD16 billion.

Enel, aiming to strengthen its presence in Brazil's electricity distribution sector and planning EUR5 billion in investments for 2025-2027, slipped 0.2% to EUR15.94 per share.

On the Mid-Cap, Salvatore Ferragamo led gains, up 4.8% to EUR8.135 per share, followed by Caltagirone, up 3.2%, and LU-VE, up 1.3%.

MFE-MediaForEurope's new international expansion, following its entry into Germany's ProSiebenSat.1, has led to a move into Portugal with the acquisition of a 32.9% stake in Impresa SGPS, a group controlled by the Balsemão family. MFE A shares fell 0.6%, MFE B dropped 0.5%.

Among small caps, Brioschi--up 2.5%--announced that its subsidiary Milanofiori Sviluppo Srl has accepted purchase proposals from several institutional professional investors for all 73,769 units still held in the Fleurs Fund.

EPH rose 4.5% to EUR0.4840 per share, extending its gains over the past month.

Fidia dropped 6.6% to EUR0.166 per share. The company reported that Global Growth Holding Limited requested the conversion of five bonds from the convertible bond loan with warrants reserved for GGHL.

The conversion price was set at EUR0.14 per share, resulting in the issuance of a total of 357,142 Fidia shares to GGHL, which will be directly admitted to trading on the regulated market.

Among SMEs, Lindbergh--no trades recorded--announced the closing of its acquisition of Giuseppe Camaglio's company Alpiclima. In addition to the EUR200,000 already paid upon signing the preliminary agreement, a further EUR1.1 million was paid in cash.

Ubaldi Costruzioni--down 2.8%--reported a backlog of EUR182.4 million as of September 30.

The order book consists of 56 active contracts, mainly located in central Italy. Public contracts account for about 74% of the total, privately funded public initiatives 22%, with the remainder made up of private projects, confirming the company's focus on strategic business areas.

Alantra confirmed its 'buy' recommendation on Edil San Felice and raised its target price to EUR5.70 from EUR5.10 per share.

Edil San Felice announced it has secured a new EUR20 million contract from ANAS. With this award, its 2025 order book exceeds EUR98 million. The three-year framework agreement covers the installation of new road safety barriers on sections in Basilicata, the Autostrada del Mediterraneo, and Calabria. The stock was up 1.0%.

ESI--down 0.3%--announced Thursday the signing of four new contracts to revamp four photovoltaic plants in the Apulia region, totaling about 4 MWp.

It is worth noting that U.S. markets remained closed for the Thanksgiving holiday.

In Asia, the Nikkei slipped 0.1% to 50,132.00, the Shanghai Composite advanced 0.3% to 3,888.60, and the Hang Seng ended down 0.3% at 25,858.89.

On the currency front, the euro traded at USD1.1572, down from USD1.1600 at Thursday's close, while the pound traded at USD1.3208, down from USD1.3247 last night.

Among commodities, Brent crude traded at USD62.87 per barrel, down from USD63.28 at Thursday's close, while gold was valued at USD4,162.60 an ounce, up from USD4,154.60 last night.

On Friday's economic calendar, at 1100 CET, Italy's inflation data is due.

In the evening, at 2230 CET, the Federal Reserve's weekly balance sheet will be released.

By Michele Cirulli, Alliance News Reporter

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