Stock markets: Milan (+0.3%) holds steady at the close. Wall Street closes higher; oil prices fall

(Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - The markets breathe a sigh of relief in the wake of the so-called ‘economic D-Day’ against Iran, which proved less severe than the rhetoric employed by Washington and dispels the spectre of military escalation, fuelling a fall in oil prices, with Brent crude returning below the psychological threshold of 90 dollars. Europe closed mixed, with Milan up 0.34 per cent and Frankfurt also performing well (+0.68 per cent), whilst in the latter part of the session, Paris (-0.16 per cent), Amsterdam (-0.15 per cent) and Madrid (-0.07 per cent) all lost momentum.

The sanctions plan announced on Monday by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent against Tehran “seems more like a warning shot than a genuine immediate escalation”, according to analysts at eToro. Furthermore – according to Saxo Bank – the shift of the conflict onto an economic front is a far more likely scenario than a new military escalation. Meanwhile, the foreign ministers of Iran and Oman – the two countries that control the Strait of Hormuz – have met for talks in Tehran. Against this backdrop, the markets are already looking ahead to Wednesday’s US inflation figures, as well as the results from chip giant Nvidia, which remain a crucial test of the resilience and prospects of shares linked to AI development. Meanwhile, optimism regarding the sector prevailed during today’s trading session on European stock markets.

Wall Street closes higher. The Dow Jones rises by 0.30 per cent to 53,577.17 points, the Nasdaq gains 0.66 per cent to 26,151.30 points, whilst the S&P 500 posted a gain of 0.32 per cent to 7,677.20 points. Semiconductor stocks were in the spotlight ahead of Nvidia’s quarterly results, due on Wednesday. Shares in Advanced Micro Devices, Micron Technology, Intel Broadcom and Nvidia Corp. Inflation is a key issue for market participants, who are awaiting the publication, scheduled for Wednesday, of the Personal Consumption Expenditure price index for July, which will provide important guidance to the Fed regarding its next moves on interest rates. In any case, further clues regarding the trajectory of the Fed’s monetary policy are likely to emerge on Friday 28th with the speech by Fed Chairman Kevin Warsh at the Jackson Hole symposium.

On the Milan Stock Exchange, Prysmian finished among the top performers, whilst Stmicroelectronics. Leading the way was Tenaris (+4%). The banking sector remains in the spotlight: Banco Bpm closed lower on the day of the board meeting that began the review of the public exchange offer launched by Banca Monte Paschi Siena, with the board reaching a unanimous decision. Meanwhile, Banca Generali is making up ground. Meanwhile, in Rome, the Minister for the Economy, Giorgetti, met with local institutions, confirming that the State will not sell its 4.8% stake in Rocca Salimbeni . Intesa Sanpaolo after proxy advisers ISS and Glass Lewis advised shareholders to approve the capital increase to fund the takeover bid for Monte dei Paschi. Little movement Generali is performing better than Unipol. At the bottom of the list, Moncler and Brunello Cucinelli, following the previous day’s gains, whilst the market is also monitoring the fallout from the departure of Leonardo Maria Del Vecchio from Essilorluxottica.

On the foreign exchange market, the euro/dollar exchange rate stands at 1.167 (up from 1.166 at the open and yesterday’s close). The single currency is also trading at 185.9 yen (from 185.81 and 185.66), whilst the dollar/yen cross is at 159.26 (159.34 and 159.13). On the energy front, oil prices are down by around 3 per cent, with the October WTI futures contract at $82.4 per barrel and the Brent contract for the same expiry date at $89.3. There was also a reversal for natural gas in Amsterdam, which fell by 2.8 per cent to 66.4 euros per megawatt-hour. Gold’s losses have eased, trading at $4,644 per ounce (-0.16%), whilst Bitcoin has fallen back below $80,000 (around $79,000) after briefly returning to its mid-May highs, exceeding $81,000.