The overall mood on equity markets remains calm, with European indices little changed and U.S. futures pointing to an opening in line with yesterday's levels.
Traders will be watching this afternoon for U.S. macro data, particularly January retail sales, though the main focus is on tomorrow's labor market figures, originally scheduled for last Friday but postponed due to the brief U.S. government shutdown. Import and export prices will also be monitored today to assess any tariff effects.
Around 12:45 p.m., the Ftse Mib is up slightly by 0.27%. Trading volumes are around 1.6 billion euros.
Today's notable stocks
** FERRARI jumps 7.5% immediately after the release of its quarterly results.
** STELLANTIS climbs 4.4% after surging by well over 6% earlier, in a technical rebound and short covering following Friday's plunge, with some traders believing the worst may be over.
** On the opposite front, MPS loses 1.7%. The quarterly results from the Siena-based bank, in line or slightly above expectations, do not surprise analysts, who remain more focused on the integration plan for its subsidiary MEDIOBANCA, which, by contrast, gains 2.4%. The divergent performance of the two stocks also reflects bets on a possible delisting of Mediobanca, prompting arbitrageurs to position themselves for the expected exchange ratios should the company withdraw from the stock market.
** Elsewhere in the sector, BANCO BPM falls 1.3%, UNICREDIT slips 0.4% after yesterday's rally on its quarterly results, and INTESA SANPAOLO loses 0.3%.
** Luxury stocks stand out in a sector supported across Europe today by Kering's stronger-than-expected results and signs of improvement, particularly for the Gucci brand. In Milan, MONCLER and CUCINELLI rise 1.3%, while FERRAGAMO advances 2.2%.
** Buying is seen in the energy sector, both among oil companies and utilities.
(Andrea Mandalà, editing Stefano Bernabei)
