Stock market: bond market slowdown gives Europe some breathing space; ‘Risiko’ pushes Milan up 0.9 per cent
Unicredit (+1.1%) and B.Generali (+3.4%) rise on speculation
(Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - After two days of selling, European stock markets are taking a breather thanks to a slowdown in government bond yields. The markets therefore closed the final session of the week higher, albeit below the day’s highs, with Milan’s FTSE MIB gaining 0.91 per cent, whilst Wall Street also made steady progress. On the bond front, whilst the 10-year US Treasury yield rose to 5.258 per cent, yields on the main European government bonds fell, with the 10-year BTP at 4.58 per cent, the French OAT of the same maturity at 4.86 per cent and the German Bund at 3.48 per cent.
At the same time, crude oil prices are rising again following a volatile trading session: having fallen by more than 1 per cent during the day, Brent then reversed course and is trading at $104.93 per barrel (+0.6 per cent), whilst WTI stands at $91.99 (+0.55 per cent). Whilst comments by US President Donald Trump – who stated that he did not wish to attack Iran before the November mid-term elections – had fuelled market optimism, tensions in the Strait of Hormuz have since returned to the forefront. Tehran has in fact stated that it struck a ‘large LPG tanker, the NV Sunshine’, accused of attempting to cross ‘an illegal route’ south of the Strait. As a result, gas prices in Amsterdam began to rise again, climbing back above 80 euros per megawatt-hour to 81.8 euros (+3.8 per cent).
Turning to the equity market, banks are performing strongly on the Milan Stock Exchange, with uncertainty in the sector still at the forefront and the market awaiting greater clarity on the next moves by UniCredit (+1.1%), which is holding an extraordinary board meeting today. The market is speculating on the possibility of a deal involving Banca Generali (+3.4%). Meanwhile, the transaction involving Piazza Gae Aulenti and Commerzbank has been notified to the European Commission: the deadline for Brussels’ decision is 16 November. There was a flurry of buying in Amplifon, which closed up 6.8% after its Danish rival Demant (+6.1% in Copenhagen) raised its forecasts for 2026. Fincantieri (+6.9%) and Inwit (+4.5%) also performed well. Tech stocks showed mixed performance, with Technoprobe up 1% and ST bringing up the rear at -3%, whilst the market assesses OpenAI’s revenue forecasts.
In the currency markets, the euro has slipped below the $1.12 mark, standing at exactly $1.1194 (yesterday’s closing price was $1.1211). The single currency is trading at 177.26 yen (176.81), whilst the dollar/yen exchange rate stands at 158.35 (157.59). Bitcoin rose by 1.6 per cent to $82,950.
