Black day for the markets, which closed down in Europe after the losses in Asia and the off-beat start on Wall Street.
What's scary is the slowdown Chinese manufacture, while the cooling of theinflation in Germany, France and Italy it is not enough to sustain the mood of investors who are looking with concern at the path to the US congress of the agreement to raise the debt ceiling. The agreement received the go-ahead from a committee in the chamber and will soon have to be voted on by the chamber. Once this obstacle has been overcome, it will be up to the Senate to close the game by June 5, the date from which the hypothetical US default takes effect.
In this context the dollar returns to magnetize purchases, rejecting the euro below 1,07. Oil remains weak, falling fractionally, while interest in gold returns.
Piazza Affari in black jersey
At the end of today's trading Business Square it is the worst in Europe, with a loss of 1,97% which brings it back on the verge of 26 basis points (26.051). However, the picture is not very encouraging a Frankfurt -1,55% Paris -1,54% Madrid -1,27% Amsterdam -1,03% London -1,07%.
Sales hit the cyclical, auto and industrial, luxury and raw materials sectors.
A macro painting in chiaroscuro
European investors also had to digest today a heavy macroeconomic page, which opened with a contraction higher than expected in the Chinese manufacture in May (PMI at 48,8 from 49,2 in April and expectations at 49,4. Below 50 is contraction). Even the services sector flattened slightly to 54,5 from 56,4 in April and expectations at 5,2. The input is therefore that the world's second largest economy is not experiencing the hoped-for recovery after the end of the zero Covid policy.
Manufacturing is then struggling in the USA: industrial activity in the Chicago area it turned out to be in contraction, in May, for the ninth consecutive month. The Chicago PMI fell from 48,6 to 40,4 points, against expectations for a figure of 47,2 points.
Good news has come instead for theinflation in the euro area, which can appease the anxiety of excessively restrictive monetary policies by the ECB. In Germany in May the trend is 6,1% against expectations at 6,9% (and 7,6% in April). In France it drops to 5,1% from 5,9% the previous month. In Italy flying is still high, +7,6%, but it was 8,2% in April.
Visco: forward on Pnrr and reforms
According to Istat, Italian economic growth is confirmed as solid in the first quarter, +0,6% on the three months before and +1,9% on a year ago and Moody's estimates an increase in GDP this year of 0,8, 0,4% and a slowdown to +2024% in XNUMX.
Promethea however he sees gray for the second quarter and perhaps also for the third. "The future continues () to remain weighed down by risks that are increasingly reflected in the various qualitative indicators collected from businesses and households, in Italy as in the rest of Europe" writes the study centre, which adds: " After the recovery in the first part of the year, the indicator (Weip) has been retreating in recent weeks, supporting the forecast of a second quarter, and perhaps even a third, of very weak, stagnant growth”.
Today also spoke the governor Ignazio Visco, who performed his last final thoughts before the end of his 12-year mandate. A "testament" in which he observed how Italy has resisted the many black swans recent years, but he also invited the country not to waste time on Pnrr and reforms.
On monetary policy, the governor said that the ECB will have to use the "necessary gradualness", continuing its action for a "progressive, but not slow" return of inflation within the 2% target.
Declining spreads and rates
Cooling inflation has encouraged purchases of government bonds, which are seeing declining yields.
On the secondary it spread between 181-year BTPs and Bunds of equal duration is 0,64 basis points (-XNUMX%) and rates are indicated respectively at +4,07% and +2,27%.
However, Bankitalia's annual report shows that, in 2022, the expenditure incurred by the state to pay interest on public debt securities shot up to the highest level since 2012, at 83,2 billion euros, due to the increase in interest rates.
Mps and a few other titles are in the spotlight in Milan
Even on a day like this, there is some good news on the main Milanese index. In particular, it is confirmed as effervescent Monte Paschi bank of Siena (+1,79%), after the considerations made in recent days by Minister Giorgetti and CEO Luigi Lovaglio who have shown their willingness to participate in the creation of a third banking pole for the country. However, Banco Bpm (-1,93%) answered spades on the subject through the mouth of the chairman Massimo Tononi: ”We have no intention of pursuing a merger project with Monte dei Paschi di Siena. We have a stand-alone strategy that has enabled us to achieve really positive results and with which we hope to create a lot of value for our future shareholders".
Among the financial stocks archive a good session also Finecobank +1,02% and nexi +0,91%. They also save themselves from sales Campari + 0,41% Inwit + 0,38% A2a + 0,23%.
For other blue chips, the sell-off has been intense. The most affected are Prysmian -4,15%, after the gains on the eve of e Leonardo -4,06%. In the automotive down stellantis -3,52%, even if Moody's improved the group's outlook from stable to positive and confirmed the long-term Baa2 rating. Bad Pirelli -3,12%.
It was also a bad day for the banks, with the exception, as mentioned, of Siena. The big names are in deep red Understanding -2,47% and Unicredit -3,55%.
Oil stocks lose strongly: Eni -3,53% and Saipem -3,19%.
In the list of the ten worst stocks of the day there are also Recordati -3,22% Interpump -3,13% ed Enel -2,56%.
