(Alliance News) - Piazza Affari closed Tuesday's session slightly up on a day marked by worsening investor sentiment in the Eurozone.

The ZEW indicator of economic sentiment for the Eurozone continued to slump in August, falling 25.8 points to a nine-month low of 17.9, well below forecasts of 35.4.

This was the second consecutive month of deterioration in the morale indicator amid continued uncertainty about the economic outlook and the direction of monetary policies.

The FTSE Mib closed Tuesday up 0.3 percent to 32,006.45, the Mid-Cap rose 0.2 percent to 45,206.76, the Small-Cap gave up 0.1 percent to 27,816.82, and Italy Growth finished essentially flat at 7,869.11.

London's FTSE 100 closed up 0.3 percent, Paris' CAC 40 gained 0.3 percent and Frankfurt's DAX 40 rose 0.5 percent.

On the Mib, Nexi did best of all, up 2.4 percent and with a closing price of EUR5.8140. The shares are among the most traded on the list, with nearly 5.0 million changed hands.

Brunello Cucinelli rises 1.5 percent and paytech follows, with the shares reaching EUR84.00 each, albeit with significantly below average trading volumes.

Telecom Italia, on the other hand, closed at the bottom, complicit in a 1.5 percent decline. The former monopolist, together with Impulse I - a consortium led by Ardian - and Daphne 3, reached an agreement to sell TIM's remaining 10 percent stake in the holding company Daphne 3, which holds a 29.9 percent stake in Inwit, which gained 0.4 percent today.

The deal is based on a valuation of Inwit shares of EUR10.43 and implies a proceeds for TIM, in addition to the 2024 guidance, of about EUR250 million, taking into account existing net debt at the Daphne 3 level.

On the other hand, Hera, the best among utilities, did well, with a 1.4 percent increase bringing the share value to EUR3.34 each.

On the Mid-Cap, PharmaNutra rose 1.7 percent, in its third session with a bullish candle.

Alerion, on the other hand, did better than all, accomplishing a 4.0% rise, after two bearish sessions and priced at EUR15.78.

Cembre rose 1.3 percent, following the 1.1 percent increase with which it closed Monday evening.

OVS reversed its initial decline and rose 0.1 percent to end the session%, after reporting that it had purchased--in the period between August 5 and August 9--520,594 of its own ordinary shares. The average unit price was EUR2.4051, for a total value of just under EUR1.3 million.

Marked decline, however, for Zignago Vetro, which gave up 4.0 percent, in its fourth bearish session in a row and with a price of EUR10.48 per share.

On the Small-Cap, Bastogi rose 2.6 percent to EUR0.3960 per share, after 3.0 percent red on the eve of the session, and with a high for the day at EUR0.4030.

Landi Renzo lost 0.2% despite a positive start and after a 1.4% rise on eve.

Among SMEs, Defence Holding rose 4.2% to EUR3.48 after a 0.3% decline on the eve.

Circle - down 0.3% - on Tuesday reported that it has signed a major contract with a Mediterranean port to implement advanced Port Community System (PCS) services. The deal is worth more than EUR150,000.

Askoll Eva closed up 1.9 percent after opening down more than 10 percent and after two sessions closed in the red.

Ambromobiliare, on the other hand, lost 4.3 percent in what was its third consecutive session among losers.

In New York, the Dow rose 0.5 percent to 39,554.55, the Nasdaq gained 1.7 percent to 17,069.71, and the S&P 500 was up 1.1 percent.

The stock markets rose after the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that U.S. producer prices rose 0.1 percent on a monthly basis in July after rising 0.2 percent in June and below forecasts of 0.2 percent.

On a year-on-year basis, producer price inflation fell to 2.2 percent from an upwardly revised 2.7 percent in June.

The core rate was unchanged on a monthly basis, while it registered 2.4 percent on an annual basis, well above forecasts of 0.2 percent and 2.7 percent respectively, and up from 0.3 percent and 3 percent respectively in June.

Chris Beauchamp, Chief Market Analyst at IG, said, "It looks like a 'return to normalcy' for markets as technology stocks lead the way upward again following the U.S. PPI. The figure gave courage to beleaguered investors, who remain nervous after last week's volatility. Aside from the carnage in the yen and the Nikkei, last week's seems much like a normal pullback in an otherwise strong year, and recession fears, such as expectations of a more drastic rate cut, have been scaled back in recent sessions."

Among currencies, the euro changed hands at USD1.0954 versus USD1.0933 in Monday's European equity close while the pound was worth USD1.22827 from USD1.2788 on Monday evening.

Among commodities, Brent crude is trading at USD81.26 per barrel versus USD80.54 per barrel at Monday's close. Gold, on the other hand, trades at USD2,470.43 an ounce from USD2,448.24 an ounce on Friday evening.

Wednesday's macroeconomic calendar features British inflation, at 0800 CEST, followed by French inflation, at 0845 CEST, and UK house price data, due at 1030 CEST.

Eurozone Gross Domestic Product, unemployment and industrial production data will be released at 1100 CEST.

In the afternoon, focus on US mortgages, at 1300 CEST, and US inflation, at 1430 CEST. Crude oil stocks will be released at 1630 CEST.

Among the companies in the Piazza Affari, no special events are expected.

By Giuseppe Fabio Ciccomascolo, Alliance News senior reporter

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