Flat bags in the middle of the day. Applies to Business Square, which around midday is in slightly negative territory at 18.650 basis points, but also for the other European lists: London -0,1%, Frankfurt +0,2%, Paris +0,1%. The prudence of the markets is mainly due to the wait for today's Fed meeting: all eyes are on the American central bank, which after the two-day meeting of the FOMC (the operating arm of the Federal Reserve) will announce its decision on rates.
Not much is really expected from the meeting, after the ECB's last week Mario Draghi he reiterated his accommodating policy "to the bitter end". Analysts do not give much credence to an immediate rate hike, instead expecting it by the end of 2016.
In Milan it makes a big voice stmicroelectronics, by far the best stock in the Ftse Mib basket: at midday it was up 8% to 5,635 euros per share, after having published the first quarter accounts which indeed recorded almost double losses, but also signs of recovery which evidently convinced the markets. Among the best stocks also Mediaset, FCA, Saipem and Cnh Industrial, with gains between 1 and 2%.
Instead they suffer banks: Banco Popolare is currently the worst with -2,25%, Unicredit -1,5%, Bper -1,4%, Intesa Sanpaolo -0,9% at 2,446 euros on the day of the shareholders' meeting, on the sidelines of the which the CEO Carlo Messina reiterated his intention to distribute 3 billion in dividends in 2016.
The shareholders' meeting of Snam, chaired by Lorenzo Bini Smaghi, approved the record 2015 financial statements by a large majority: net income up 3,3% to 1,24 billion on revenues of 3,65 billion (+2,3%) as well as distribution of a dividend of 0,25 euro per share, in line with the previous one, "even in a more difficult context than in the past", as stated by CEO Carlo Malacarne in the letter to shareholders. At the end of the morning, the stock gained 0,3% on the Stock Exchange, at 5,255 euros per share.
Of note is a another historical record for the Italian Treasury on the debt market. This morning the Ministry of Economy placed BoT with a six-month maturity with a negative interest rate of -0,172%, the lowest level ever recorded. Demand amounted to 10,487 billion, with a coverage/supply ratio of 1,75. The simple weighted average rate resulting from the auction is 12 points lower than that of last month and compares with the previous minimum of -0,112% in November.
Btp Bund Spread down to 122 basis points, while the euro can be bought today with 1.130215 dollars. Oil continues to climb the slope: Brent reaches 47 dollars a barrel, while WTI exceeds 45 dollars.
