Stock exchanges recover on the back of tech. Milan +1.7%

(Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - The bet that Jensen Huang, founder of Nvidia, will be able to surprise the markets tonight also gave a jolt to the European stock markets , which thus, after a start in decline, turned upwards and closed at highs. On the other hand, even government bond rates, which had been the source of much concern in recent days, took a slight step backwards, while remaining at extremely high levels. In short, the gamble that AI, of which Nvidia is a cornerstone, will reshape the world has ended up dominating the scene and creating optimism, in spite of concerns over the delicate situation in the Middle East, where it is difficult to make predictions at the moment, amid threats from President Donald Trump and attempts at peace. However, with the markets closed, the tenant of the White House declared 'we are in the final stages of negotiations with Iran. We'll see what happens', adding in any case that either an agreement will be reached, or 'we will have to take some unfortunate actions. We hope, however, that this will not happen'. The words triggered sales on crude oil, which dropped as much as 6 per cent. A further positive element that supported the markets on the day was the speculation reported by the Financial Times that Angela Merkel or Mario Draghi could play a role as an intermediary between Europe and the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, to end the conflict in Ukraine. Milan ended trading up 1.71%. The spread closed in the 73-point area, while theyield of the 10-year Btp fell to 3.82%, moving in unison with the main government bonds (10-year Treasury rates fell to 4.58%). Meanwhile, anticipation is also rising for the minutes of the Fed's latest meeting, which will be released in the evening, although the real conundrum will be over the conduct of the new chairman, Kevin Warsh. Analysts, meanwhile, have begun to anticipate possible tightening by the Fed, and also by the other major central banks, to cope with the inflationary flare-ups caused by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which, if not resolved soon, will end up challenging the industries of the western world.

On European equities, chip buying returned after the weakness of recent sessions. At Piazza Affari, Stmicroelectronics, up 6%, boasted the best performance of the Ftse Mib. Also standing out were the Prysmian (+2.78%). On the flip side, the market coolly welcomed Diasorin's 2030 plan (-2.78%). It also closed down 2.21% Nexi, after the Advent and Bain funds finally completed their exit from the payments company's capital. Among the largest-capitalisation stocks, banks fared well, with Unicredit up 2.5 per cent on the day of the Commerzbank and after it emerged that the institution's hold in the German bank rose to 42% thanks to derivatives.  Stellantis gained 1.3% on the day ofthe announcement of a joint venture with Dongfeng.

Crude oil prices, which had been falling throughout the day, extended their downward trend in the afternoon (-6% brent and wti), benefiting from renewed hopes for negotiations in the Middle East, especially after President Donald Trump's words. According to Arab media, work is underway to iron out the text of a new agreement between Washington and Tehran that could be finalised 'within hours'. However, concerns remain over the prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz that could be reflected in the minutes of the latest Fed meeting, expected tonight. Thegas in Amsterdam also went down to 49 euros per MWh (-5.3 percent). On the currency, the euro is worth 1.1630 dollars (down from 1.163 yesterday at the close) and 184.58 yen (down from 184.59), while the dollar/yen exchange rate is at 158.70 (159.14).Finally, bitcoin rose 0.7 percent to 77.494.

The US stock market closed on a decidedly positive note, with the Dow Jones index gaining 1.31% and the Nasdaq ending the day up 1.55% in the wake of rumours of a possible agreement between the US and Iran, which also led to a drop in oil futures. The S&P 500 also did well, gaining 1.07% at the end of trading.