Stock market: Milan (+1.25%) leads Europe at midday, with banks in the spotlight
Unicredit stands out with a rise of over 4%
European stock markets are rising sharply, still buoyed by the optimism following the broad agreement reached overnight between Sunday and Monday by the United States and Iran, which is due to be ratified with an official signing scheduled for Friday in Geneva. The prospect of the Strait of Hormuz reopening continues to keep crude oil prices under pressure, with prices now back to the levels seen at the start of the year and prior to the conflict in the Middle East: WTI stands at $79.13 a barrel, down 2%, whilst North Sea Brent falls by 2.4% to $81.13. Meanwhile, anticipation is mounting for Kevin Warsh’s debut at his first FOMC meeting, which begins today and concludes tomorrow. Observers take it for granted that interest rates will remain unchanged, particularly in light of the new outlook on inflation, which could return to being under control following the US-Iran agreement. Government bond yields are also falling, with the US 10-year Treasury yield at around 4.44%. US futures point to a flat start for the Dow Jones and S&P 500 and a 0.2% rise for the Nasdaq, fresh from yesterday’s 3% gain. At midday, Madrid is up 0.9%, Paris 0.7%, whilst Amsterdam is hovering around the break-even point. Frankfurt also rose by 0.7% following the announcement that the ZEW index, which measures financial experts’ expectations for the German economy, improved by 20.7 points to stand at 10.5 points in June. Milan is the best performer among the major European markets, with the FTSE MIB up 1.25% to new highs.
The market is being driven mainly by banks, whilst investors await further developments in the sector’s consolidation process. Unicredit leads the way with a rise of over 4%, despite Berlin having rejected the bid submitted for Commerzbank (+0.8%). Investors are wondering whether the bank led by Andrea Orcel might be considering a return to the forefront of the Italian banking sector, having pulled out following the conditions imposed by the government on the deal for Banco Bpm (+1.5%). And it is precisely Banco Bpm that is under scrutiny today, awaiting any indications that may emerge from the board of directors’ meeting, the first since the bid for Mps (+1.17%). StMicroelectronics, on the other hand, is slipping (-2.6%) following the announcement of the issue of a $1.5 billion convertible bond.
Meanwhile, the euro has climbed back above the $1.16 mark, standing at exactly $1.1610 (yesterday’s close was $1.16). It is also trading at 186.11 yen, whilst the dollar-yen exchange rate stands at 160.28. Gas is trading at €42.44 per megawatt hour (-0.1%), whilst bitcoin stands at $66,569 (unchanged).
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