MILAN – Piazza Affari welcomes the new wave of quarterly reports – from Enel which arrived yesterday with markets closed to Mediobanca and Iveco this morning – and is moving positively, in line with the other European stock exchanges. The optimism is supported by the fact that yesterday, in the United States, data emerged on requests for unemployment benefits that were higher than expected and thus hope of a decrease in Fed rates strengthened. Arriving today the minutes of the last ECB meeting.
However, the markets are preparing for a new, possible wave of tension on the Beijing-Washington axis. According to Bloombergin fact, as early as next week President Biden could announce new duties on Chinese production. Those that Xi is trying to push to give new life to manufacturing and from there to the global economy. And those that, for many Western countries, play on uneven ground, because they receive illicit state subsidies in a global market where they should compete on equal terms.
This is why the White House, in addition to confirming the initiatives already adopted by Trump, could now tighten the bolts on electric cars, solar technologies, batteries. The decision could also be postponed, warns the financial agency, but an important move is certainly being prepared by the president in the fight with the arch-rival XI. Expected reactions? “Investors will definitely pause on potentially exposed stocks,” Xin-Yao Ng, investment director at Abrdn, told the agency, adding that many green-tech brands, such as battery giant Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., have already limited their exposure to the United States. “Everyone knows it’s a risk.” On the Chinese markets, the news was greeted with a weakening of trade, on an overall positive day following the upward closing on Wall Street.
12.46pm
Europe is strengthening, Milan in the lead with +1%
The European stock markets confirm the good pace with Milan always in the lead. And futures on Wall Street also remain bullish. Pushing the Ftse Mib (+1.05% to 34,699 points), the results in particular of Iveco (+5.8%) after the accounts with the confirmation of the guidance for the year and Leonardo (+3.5%) in following the sale of Wass to Fincantieri (+0.64%). Also among the first are Nexi (+3.4%) again after the quarterly as well as Pirelli (+2.8%) and Mediobanca (+2.3%). Enel also did well (+3.15%) as it sold its holdings in Peru. Outside the main basket, focus on Bff Bank which collapsed to -32% after the findings by the Bank of Italy. Among the other markets, Paris gained 0.86%, Frankfurt 0.7% and London 0.88%. The area index, the Stoxx 600, gains almost a percentage point with stocks linked to public utility services and energy always in the spotlight. The spread between BTPs and Bunds remains at 132 points with the yield on the Italian 10-year bond falling by 4 basis points to 3.78%. On the commodity front, gas is volatile and goes back into negative territory with the price dropping 1.7% to 30.4 euros. Oil continues to be positive with WTI still close to 80 dollars (+0.7%) and Brent above 84 dollars a barrel (+0.5%). Finally, for exchange rates, the euro is stuck at 1.0780 dollars.
12.43pm
Bff collapses after Bank of Italy’s findings, confidence in the CEO confirmed
Bff Bank falls on the stock exchange after Bank of Italy, in formalizing some findings regarding remuneration, blocked the distribution of dividends. The stock lost over 30% in the morning. After the inspection in Via Nazionale, the bank specifies that – despite the presence of compliance findings – “it expressed its belief that the renewed corporate bodies, in their entirety, will be able to make an important contribution to the prompt resolution of the critical issues identified, and that the findings, based on the bank’s historical experience, do not imply an increase in credit losses of the Bff group’s portfolio, instead having as their object reporting profiles for prudential purposes”. Full trust in the CEO, Massimiliano Belingheri, was confirmed and a “frank and constructive” dialogue began with the supervisory authorities, in order to arrive at a “prompt resolution of the findings”.
10.10am
Italian industrial production declines in March
In March 2024, the seasonally adjusted index of industrial production is estimated to decrease by 0.5% compared to February. On average in the first quarter there was a drop in the level of production of 1.3% compared to the previous three months. On an annual basis, net of calendar effects, the overall index recorded a decline of 3.5% (calendar working days were 21 compared to 23 in March 2023). This was reported by Istat.
09:25
Milan does well with Enel and Iveco
Piazza Affari rises by 0.55% in the early stages, in line with or slightly above the other European stock exchanges. Iveco was put on sale, which initially did not make a price, and then moved to the top of the list with an increase of 6%. The stock was boosted by the quarterly report published this morning before the markets opened, which indicated stable revenues and a slightly declining net profit but above consensus. Purchases also on Enel (+2.3%), after yesterday’s accounts with profit rising to 2.2 billion and the closing of the sale in Peru, and Mediobanca (+1.7%), which this morning released the accounts and recorded above-expected profit growth. Flat Unipol (+0.2%) after the quarterly which saw net profit at 363 million euros. On the opposite front, further sales on Bper (-0.2%), Stellantis (-0.3%), Azimut (-0.4%) – fresh from the previous results – and Ferrari (-0.9%).
09:25
European stock markets open on a positive note: optimism about a rate rise
European stock markets open higher on renewed optimism for the timing of interest cuts by central banks. Investors expect that the cost of US money may fall more rapidly this year and have placed even more focus on the publication of data on US consumer and production prices next week. The Bank of England instead confirmed the rates which remain at the highest level for 16 years for the sixth consecutive meeting, while hinting that it is ready to ease its monetary policy this summer if inflation remains low. Markets now imply a 50% chance of a BoE cut in June, while a first cut in August is almost completely priced in. For the ECB, however, traders are pricing in an 88% probability that the European Central Bank will ease monetary policy in June and continue to expect three cuts this year. In Milan the Ftse Mib opened at +0.47% at 34,548 points while the Dax in Frankfurt stood at 18,763.85 points (+0.45%). The FTSE 100 in London advanced by 0.32% to 8,408.33 points while the CAC 40 in Paris increased by 0.53% to 8,231.26 points.
09:24
British GDP rises more than expected
British GDP in the first quarter rose above expectations, i.e. by 0.6% compared to the 0.4% estimated and after the economy had entered a slight recession in the second half of last year, with -0, 30%. On an annual basis, GDP grew by 0.20%. Analysts expected it to remain unchanged.
08:25
Illimity, net profit of 10.8 million
illimity closes the first quarter of 2024 reporting a net profit of 10.8 million euros, up 38% year on year. In revenues they amounted to 74.4 million euros (+3%).
08:04
Asian stock markets positive on hopes of a rate cut
Asian stock markets are rising on renewed hopes of a rate cut by the Fed and central banks in general. The Japanese Nikkei advanced by 0.26% but had managed to gain 1% while among the Chinese indices, Shanghai advanced by 0.12% and the SZSE index lost 0.1%. Taiwan rose by 0.63% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rallied, reaching an 8-week high of 2.19%. The Korean Kospi gains 0.57%.
08:03
Iveco, growing profit on stable revenues
Iveco Group closed the first quarter with consolidated revenues of 3.4 billion euros (in line with the first quarter of 2023), adjusted ebit of 233 million euros (up by 59 million euros) and adjusted net profit of to 153 million euros (up by 77 million). The free cash flow of Industrial activities was negative by 436 million euros (an improvement of 110 million euros compared to the first quarter of 2023).
“Iveco Group is ready for the next phase, having started the first quarter of the new 2024-28 cycle with solid results. All our industrial business units – Truck, Bus, Defense and Powertrain – have achieved improvements in margins, resulting in a adjusted ebit of industrial activities of 6.1%, equal to an increase of 170 basis points compared to the first quarter of last year. The entire Iveco Group team and its distinct business units, led by competent, passionate and unique people, are eager to further accelerate their journeys, presented during our recent Capital Markets Day” comments CEO Gerrit Marx.
08:02
Unipol, profit of 363 million with the contribution of the banks
Unipol closed the first quarter of the year with a consolidated accounting net profit of 242 million euros, up 7% on the same period of 2023. The result rises to 363 million euros, up 27.8%, if is recalculated by including the contribution of the banking investments in Bper and Popolare di Sondrio, in light of the quarterly results approved in recent days by the two institutions, consolidated at equity. Collection, we read in a note, rose by 9.8% to 4.2 billion euros, with the non-life sector growing by 8.7% to 2.3 billion and the life sector by 11.1%. to 1.9 billion.
07:47
Enel closes sale in Peru, effect on 1.2 billion debt
Enel sells all electricity generation in Peru to Niagara Energy after receiving the green light from the authorities. A note explains that the total consideration is equal to approximately 1.3 billion dollars (approximately 1.2 billion euros), and “includes usual adjustments for this type of transaction, in line with the provisions of the purchase and sale agreement”. The overall enterprise value, referring to 100% of the assets sold, amounts to approximately 2.1 billion US dollars (approximately 2 billion euros). The operation generated a reduction in the Group’s consolidated net debt of approximately 1.2 billion euros in 2024, which is added to the approximately 400 million euros recognized in 2023, mainly due to the reclassification as “held for sale” of assets and liabilities relating to generation assets in Peru.
