European stock markets close another session in green, after the best performance in four months recorded yesterday, while government bond yields fall in line with American ones and pending the ECB meeting on Thursday. Piazza Affari rises by 0,57% and is approaching 24 points (23.816), while the spread drops to 99 basis points and the 0,69-year interest rate drops to 0,44%. Progress is fractional in Frankfurt +0,37, 0,6; Paris +0,15%, Madrid +1,42% and London +XNUMX%. More tonic Amsterdam +XNUMX%.
The barometer has shown stable weather since the morning, but in the afternoon a wind of glory began to blow from Wall Street, which started up and driven by the rebound in the Nasdaq which is currently gaining over 3%, thanks also to the reassuring words of Janet Yellen. Purchases of stay-at-home securities are back in New York, after the rotation of the last few sessions which brought back securities more linked to the economic recovery. Apple, Amazon, Microsoft and Netflix all earned at least 3%. Tesla, which has lost 21% in the last five sessions, appreciates today by a double-digit percentage.
To instill a general optimism is the vaccination campaign and the drop in yields of T-Bonds, also in view of a sequence of US Treasury auctions worth 120 billion dollars (which starts tomorrow with 38 billion in 10-year bonds). The US 1,56-year bond trades today with rising prices and falling yields, at 1900%. Furthermore, the bill for the XNUMX trillion dollar aid package could be signed this week, if the US House of Representatives approves the bill today. This powerful intervention by the Biden administration, according to the OECD, will be able to stimulate a global recovery and world economic growth by one percentage point.
In the face of such impressive maneuvers, the risk of inflation still remains, against which gold seems to offer a hedge, which today is rebounding from its nine-month low. Spot gold and futures gain around 2%. Oil is slightly down on the other hand, after gains following tensions in Saudi Arabia and the OECD+ meeting. Brent fell almost 0,7% to 67,8 dollars a barrel. On the foreign exchange market, the euro recovers positions against the dollar, after yesterday's losses, but the exchange rate remains just below 1,9. Meanwhile, Eurostat has corrected its GDP estimates for the fourth quarter of 2020 with a drop of 0,7% and 6,6% per year in the single currency area, while the recovery is at +0,3% in the employment rate.
The OECD has instead updated its global forecasts, marked by the optimism induced by a large vaccination campaign which, however, concerns above all the United States. Unfortunately, another frozen shower from Johnson & Johnson arrives on the EU, even before the vaccine is approved. Reuters writes that the pharmaceutical company has supply problems that could complicate plans to supply 55 million doses in the second quarter of the year. For Italy, hope comes from Russia: "the first agreement in Europe was signed between the Russian government fund and the Adienne Pharma & Biotech company for the production of the Sputnik V vaccine in Italy".
The government's determination to speed up the immunization campaign against Covid also supports the mood of Piazza Affari. In this context, pharmaceutical stocks are rearing their head again. Amplifon, which met financial analysts in London today, is queen of the list with a rise of 4,77%. Recordati did well +0,83%, while Diasorin (-0,76%) confirmed its negative performance. Brilliant session for Prysmian +3,83% and Stm +2,86%. Leonardo appreciates by 2,75%, waiting to disclose this evening the 2020 accounts and the 2021 guidance. At the end of January, the board of directors had specified that it had completed the preliminary analysis of the expected performance in 2020 which "showed an excellent performance in the fourth quarter, in line with the expectations", underlining that "the business continues to be solid in managing the challenges related to COVID-19".
As a result, the group expected "to obtain orders, revenues and Ebita in line with the 2020 Guidance, and to achieve a Free operating cash flow of approximately zero and in any case slightly positive, thanks to the actions implemented to achieve the significant collections expected on the programs during the fourth quarter”. Banks are mixed. Bper (+2,69%) remains in the spotlight, on the bet of a possible marriage with Banco Bpm (+1,31%). According to some analysts, the hypothesis is stronger after the agreement between Banco and Cattolica on the subject of bancassurance, which eliminates an element of uncertainty and may pave the way for a future partnership with Unipol (-0,34%). In the sector, profit-taking penalized Unicredit -1,82%. Still in dust Stellantis +1,82%.
Telecom sales -1,87%; Tenaris -1,71%. Asset management in red. The spread drops below 100 to 99 basis points and the BTP rate falls to +0,69%. Outside the main basket, Cerved rose by 19,9% (9,61 euro per share), following the news that Castor will promote a voluntary takeover bid involving all the ordinary shares of the company listed on the MidCap. The offeror will recognize a consideration equal to 9,5 euros per share tendered in acceptance of the offer, the price incorporating a premium of 18,5% with respect to the closing price of Cerved Group in the session of 8 March.
