Stock markets: Europe takes a breather after a record half-year; Milan down 0.15 per cent. Wall Street in the red
All eyes are on the Central Bank Forum in Sintra, with Warsh assuring: “The Fed will remain independent”. The market returns to fundamentals: EU inflation falls to 2.8% in June
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(Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - European stock markets are taking a breather following the rally seen over the past six months, which saw the FTSE MIB gain 15%. The slowdown in inflation across the Eurozone (down to 2.8% in June according to Eurostat’s flash estimate) – which has pushed back the prospect of an interest rate hike – has failed to reassure investors, and volatility has prevailed. As a result, Milan ended the first trading session of July down 0.15%. The day’s key catalyst was the speeches by leading central bankers at the Sintra meeting. Of particular note were the remarks by Fed Chairman Kevin Warsh, who assured: ‘We have been an independent central bank for a very long time. We will continue to be an independent central bank today as well. And you will see no change in this regard.” In emphasising that interest rates must return as the primary tool and that the balance sheet must be reduced, the Chairman expressed full support for the ECB’s decision to abandon forward guidance in favour of an approach based on the analysis of data and scenarios.
Against the backdrop of the Middle East, with the talks in Doha between the United States and Iran taking centre stage, President Trump reassures: ‘Iran’s denuclearisation is progressing well. They’ve had some very positive meetings and we’ll see.’ The possibility of a toll for crossing the Strait of Hormuz remains, and in this context, oil prices continue to fall: Brent crude is at $71.4 per barrel (-2%).
Wall Street falls; Warsh in Sintra takes centre stage
Wall Street down – S&P 500 -0.21%, Dow Jones -0.02%, Nasdaq -0.66% -, with the markets starting the new month in negative territory, following strong gains in the first half of the year.
The main indices closed higher on Tuesday, marking a positive first half of the year. In the first six months of the year, the Dow Jones rose by 8.9 per cent, recording its best first-half performance since 2021. The S&P 500 index rose by 9.6% and the Nasdaq by 12.8%.
The rise in semiconductor and artificial intelligence-related shares has driven the stock market, and Tuesday’s gains were partly due to the rise in shares in the sector. In fact, a record rally in the chip sector added 2,000 billion dollars to the combined market capitalisation of Micron, Intel and Advanced Micro Devices in the second quarter of 2026.
