La French political crisis has influenced the European stock markets today and has weighed down the bonds and the euro, even if the rally in Tokyo and Wall Street's (now contrasting) start They acted as a counterweight, supporting risk appetite. Amid pushes and counter-pushes, gold once again soared, refreshing its all-time highs, above $3950 an ounce.
At the end of the session the continental squares are in no particular order: Paris is the worst and recorded a loss of 1,36%, weighed down primarily by the banking sector. Milan and Madrid, at least partially affected in their strong points, also closed slightly lower at -0,26% and -0,33%, respectively. Frankfurt was flat, while Amsterdam rose by 0,56%. Outside the eurozone, London fell 0,15%.
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Overseas Wall Street moves mixed (DJ -0,25%, S&P 500 +0,21%, Nasdaq +0,38%), after a solid start. Non-essential government activities are still on hold, as Republicans and Democrats have failed to reach an agreement, but investors remain relatively indifferent to the shutdown and are focusing on the expected Fed rate cut and new developments in the effervescent world of artificial intelligence.
In particular, AMD rose by 27,28% after the news that OpenAI will buy its own chips for tens of billions of dollars in a deal that could give the ChaptGpt group a stake of around 10% of the semiconductor manufacturer.
Spreads on the rise, BTPs and Oats go head to head.
The renunciation of the new French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu, just twelve hours after submitting the list of ministers, has shaken President Emmanuel Macron's seat, but also French government bonds. The 10-year OAT closed with a yield of 3,57% and a spread with the German 10-year bond of 86 basis points.
It is about same spread with the Bund as the Italian paper, which also sees the same return with the benchmark of the same duration. During the session, however, the OAT spread actually surpassed, and rating agencies warned Paris: political paralysis could cause the country to regress.
Euro down
The domino effect that started in Paris has also hit the euro, which is losing around 0,3% against the dollar, while still preserving at the moment an exchange rate above 1,17.
On the currency market, the yen's fall was far greater, having also touched a record low against the euro at 176,25. However, the main Japanese index, the Nikkei, closed with a rise of 4,75%, reaching its highest ever, after the election of Sanae Takaichi to lead Liberal Democratic Party, a position that will lead her to become Japan's next prime minister, the first woman to hold this role. Traders are betting on stimulus to revive the Japanese economy and, in the short term, on the Bank of Japan's postponement of its interest rate hike.
However, it is of a completely different origin. yet another gold rally, which has its roots in the prolonged US shutdown. The tireless precious metal, available for immediate delivery, is currently trading at $3955,10 an ounce (after hitting $3958,81). The December 2025 futures contract is at $3979, but has already surpassed $3981 today. The gains are just under 1,8%. Bitcoin is also benefiting significantly from the overall picture, reaching a record high of $125.183.
Today's session seems also favorable to oil, which is trading higher after OPEC+, the Organization of the Oil Exporting Countries (OPEC), along with Russia and other producers, announced yesterday that it will increase production by 137.000 barrels per day (bpd) starting in November, matching October's figure, amid persistent fears of a looming supply glut. Fears had been of a much higher increase.
Texas crude oil (November 2025) is trading at $61,35 a barrel, up 0,77%, and Brent crude, December 2025, is at $65,18 (+1,01%). Gas price surge in Amsterdam, due to the cold in central-northern Europe: 33,225 euros per MWh (+5,68)
Piazza Affari remains firmly above 43 points, thanks to Stellantis, Saipem, and Mediobanca.
Piazza Affari is slightly down, but remains firmly above 43 thousand points achieved last week. Stellantis, which is enjoying a splendid October, is at the top of the list, up 3,38%, having gained nearly 18,5% in the last week. According to Banca Akros, the stock is being boosted by rumors of new tariff breaks that the US administration is expected to introduce for car manufacturers with final assembly in the United States. Furthermore, the Italian-French company plans to invest approximately $10 billion in the US to strengthen its presence in the market.
Saipem +2,99% and the others did well blue chip oil companyEni +1,36% and Tenaris +0,81%, thanks to the modest rebound in crude oil. Following US tech stocks, Prysmian is gaining 1,68%, while banks are mixed. After recent losses, Mediobanca is rebounding, up 2,16%, along with former cooperative stocks, while MPS -1,41%, Intesa -1,55%, and Unicredit -0,5% are all negative. The worst performers of the day are Azimut -1,57% and Ferrari -1,57%. Fashion is also weak, with Moncler -1,49% and Cucinelli -0,66%.
Out of the main basket though Aeffe recovers 12,25%, following Friday's plunge of more than 40% after announcing the start of the negotiated resolution process for the company's crisis. Safilo fell 4,42%, downgraded by Kepler Cheuvreux to 'hold' from 'buy', which doesn't see much room for further growth for a stock that has recently appreciated significantly.
