THE EXCHANGES DOWN WAITING FOR THE FED (20.15 PM)
THE BTP/BUND SPREAD NEARS 400
Closing in sharp declines for Piazza Affari (Ftse Mib 14119 -1,65%) in line with the rest of Europe: Paris -1,52%, London -0,50%, Frankfurt -1,83%. Tensions on the Eurozone front prevail over expectations for the Fed's decisions. Uncertainty continues to linger on Greece. The Greek finance minister, Evangelos Venizelos, said that the country is faced with a historic choice, whether or not to remain a member of Europe. Next week the ECB, the International Monetary Fund and the EU will meet the Greek authorities to evaluate the progress of the austerity plan.
Germany yesterday reopened the placement of the 2021-year reference September 4,2 for 1,8 billion euros, recording a drop in the 2,15-year yield below two per cent [1,25% from 400% at the end of August] for the first time in history. Meanwhile, Portugal has placed all of the 394 billion in three- and six-month bonds that it intended to allocate with two-speed yields: falling over three months and rising over six months. In this context, the Btp/Bund spread did not break through the ceiling of 5,71 points, the psychological threshold to defend after the relegation by Standard & Poor's, stopping at XNUMX. But the Btp yield rose to XNUMX%
FIAT FALLS AFTER MOODY'S DOWNGRADING
ANSALDO RUNS +6%. MEDIASET LOSES
The black jersey of the day goes to Fiat -6,22%, in free fall after Moody's announced the cut of the rating to BA2, confirming a negative outlook (judgment on future prospects). In Moody's opinion, the strong interdependence created between Fiat and Chrysler counts: in the event of difficulty, the rating agency observes, the two manufacturers would be called upon to provide mutual support. For Sergio Marchionne this is a strength, Moody's underlines it as an element of risk. Yesterday the stock had gained 7% on the wave of the meeting with analysts in London. Today, on the contrary, Fiat Industrial is on the shields + 3,32%.
Ansaldo's run (+6%) should be noted after the confirmation that various groups are interested in acquiring it. The rise does not affect the parent company Finmeccanica which falls by 0,3%. Saipem climbs +1% after announcing new Onshore contracts worth a total of 650 million dollars in Canada and Nigeria. In recent days, the company had announced the awarding of offshore and onshore drilling contracts for a total value of over 500 million dollars in Angola and Saudi Arabia. The Mediaset index weighed down (-5,32%) also due to the growing uncertainties linked to the stability of the government.
FINAL DOWN FOR BANKS: INTESA -3,01%
THE STOCK SOCK SNOBES THE MEDIOBANCA ACCOUNTS
Banks are challenged and subject to sudden excursions. Intesa, which gained 0,3%, closed at -3,01%, Unicredit -3,27%, MontePaschi -1,35%, positive Pop Mi -1,52%. Mediobanca -3,25% in Piazza Affari after the announcement of the 2010-2011 accounts, closed with an 8% drop in profit to 368,6 million, and the confirmation of the dividend at 0,17 euro per share. In the meantime, it was announced that Pierre Lefevre, general manager of Groupama, will take the place of Jean Azema on the board of directors of Mediobanca. This was announced by Vincent Bolloré who confirmed the designation of Anne-Marie Idrac, "a great professional in the public and private sector" as an independent member in place of Antoine Bernheim. Meanwhile, uncertainty about Greece continues to remain. The Greek finance minister, Evangelos Venizelos, said that the country is faced with a historic choice, whether or not to remain a member of Europe.
Next week the ECB, the International Monetary Fund and the EU will meet the Greek authorities to evaluate the progress of the austerity plan. While awaiting the Federal Reserve's press release, Wall Street continues without particular jolts with the three indices moving around parity. The Federal Reserve note is expected at 20.15 pm Italian time. Among the macro-variables, the euro-dollar cross stands at 1,367, the single currency weighs on the uncertainty about the future of Athens. Realizations on gold continue, falling by 1% to 1.786 dollars after a brief appearance above 1.800 dollars.
Silver loses the psychological threshold of 40 dollars. As far as macro indicators are concerned, the increase in August of existing home sales in the United States, up 7,7%, better than the estimates of +1,7%, is significant. Conversely, a higher-than-expected increase for crude stocks. WTI oil erased gains and lost 0,9% to 86 dollars.
