(Alliance News) - On Thursday, the main European indices are expected to be mixed, according to IG futures, with the Italian stock market expected to close slightly above Wednesday's close, London expected to close below parity, and Frankfurt lacking momentum.
The Paris index is expected to rise slightly, as French President Emmanuel Macron is expected to name a new prime minister following the surprise resignation of Sébastien Lecornu and his government.
On the currency front, the EUR/USD pair is under downward pressure, falling below 1.17, supported by the strengthening of the US dollar favored by safe-haven flows and expectations that the Fed will maintain a stable policy during the government shutdown.
Federal Reserve officials expect another interest rate cut this year, noting that the downside risks to employment are "elevated and increasing," according to the FOMC minutes released on Wednesday.
"In the US, despite the government shutdown, recent indicators such as the ISM manufacturing index and consumer confidence data suggest that the economy remains resilient to a certain extent," notes Linh Tran, analyst at XS.com.
Meanwhile, Treasury yields have fallen slightly but remain relatively high, supporting the strength of the dollar against most major currencies.
In contrast, the economic outlook for the Eurozone continues to look fragile.
"In addition," Tran comments, "political and fiscal tensions in Europe continue to weigh on investor sentiment. Disputes over national budget plans—particularly in Germany and Italy—have raised concerns about the EU's ability to maintain common fiscal discipline."
The FTSE Mib is up 0.2% or 15 points after closing Wednesday up 1.0% at 43,484.24 points.
In Europe, London's FTSE 100 is down 0.3% or 24.3 points, Paris' CAC 40 is up 0.1% or 8.4 points, and Frankfurt's DAX 40 is up 0.1% or 29.0 points.
In Milan last night, the Mid-Cap rose 0.9% to 58,401.46, the Small-Cap was up 0.3% to 37,738.83, and the Italia Growth gained 0.4% to 8,827.62 points.
On the Italian stock exchange, Leonardo's stock rose 2.4% after successfully renegotiating a new EUR1.8 billion ESG-linked revolving credit line, signed with 26 international and domestic banks, recording an oversubscription of approximately EUR5 billion.
Prysmian, which updated its annual high to EUR 91.06 per share, closed at the top with purchases of 4.3%.
Snam, up 0.8%, signed an agreement with the shareholders of Higas, the company that owns the Oristano coastal LNG depot, to begin a period of exclusive analysis and negotiation regarding the possible acquisition of 100% of the company's share capital with conversion of the plant.
Banco BPM, up 2.3%, played a leading role in the acquisition and subsequent delisting of Bialetti Industrie with a loan of EUR 40.00 million.
Stellantis, down 1.2% on the day, followed up with new appointments to the board: Emanuele Cappellano, Jean Philippe Imparato, Herlander Zona, Samir Cherfan, Gregoire Olivier, Francesco Ciancia, and Ralph Gilles. The stock followed the decline in the automotive sector after BMW's profit warning.
Iveco, which inaugurated a new facility similar to its Turin test track in Ulm, Germany, ended flat at EUR18.175 per share.
Lottomatica recorded a positive return of 1.6% after a EUR 9.0 million buyback.
Telecom Italia was at the bottom of the list with a 2.8% decline to EUR0.4722 per share.
On the Mid-Cap, Sesa acquired 20% of Albasoft, which in 2024 reported revenues of approximately EUR 2.2 million and EBITDA of approximately EUR 1.2 million, with a team of 14 professionals. The stock gained 0.7%.
Fincantieri, which hit a new all-time high of EUR 27.38 per share, jumped 1.4%.
Avio saw double-digit purchases of 18% at EUR 64.60 per share, with Safilo Group - which updated its annual high to EUR 1.692 - up 12%.
Among the worst performers were Carel Industries, down 3.1%, and Philogen, down 3.8%.
In the small-cap sector, Bastogi recorded a new 52-week high of EUR0.958 per share and ended the day down 4.1%.
Centrale del Latte d'Italia strengthened by 5.9% to EUR 3.58 per share, with Digital Bros also performing very well, up 4.2%.
Class Editori also saw good buying, up 6.6%.
Sales were down 3.6% on Mondo TV and Softlab, which fell 3.0%.
Among SMEs, Siav completed the placement of a EUR 2.0 million bond, fully subscribed by Banca Valsabbina. The bond, with a variable rate of 2.75% and maturing in 2032, is non-convertible and unlisted. The stock closed flat at EUR 2.08 per share.
VNE announced the appointment of Matteo Genoni as its new investor relations manager. Genoni takes over from Fiaschi, the current chief financial officer, while the stock gained 0.8%.
Officina Stellare reached a 52-week high of EUR 27.40 per share, up more than 19%.
Execus rose significantly, up 18%, while Arterra Bioscience, which updated its annual high, gained 12%.
TMP Group closed the basket down 9.2% at EUR5.90 per share.
In New York on Wednesday evening, the Dow closed fractionally lower at 46,601.78, the Nasdaq advanced 1.1% to 23,043.38, while the S&P 500 gained 0.6% to 6,753.72.
In Asia, the Nikkei is up 1.7%, the Shanghai Composite is up 1.2%, while the Hang Seng is down fractionally.
On the currency front, the euro is trading at USD1.1632 from USD1.1609 at Wednesday evening's stock market close, while the pound is trading at USD1.3392 from USD1.3424 last night.
Among commodities, Brent is trading at USD 66.25 per barrel from USD 66.50 per barrel at yesterday evening's close, while gold is worth USD 4,037.13 per ounce from USD 4,047.59 per ounce yesterday evening.
On Thursday's economic calendar, the Eurogroup meeting is scheduled for 1200 CEST.
At 1:30 p.m. CEST, the ECB will publish the minutes of its monetary policy meeting, while at 2:30 p.m. CEST, Fed Chair Jerome Powell is expected to give a speech with further data on the labor market.
No significant announcements are expected from the Italian stock exchange.
By Antonio Di Giorgio, Alliance News Reporter
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