Miss a few shots Business Square after successful start. The market is looking towards tonight's appointment when, after markets are closed, Standard & Poor's will update the Italian sovereign rating, now BBB-. The Ftse Mib index is now down 0,2% just below the 22.800 mark. The trend of the other markets is quite different, at their highest levels for five months, "doped" by the decline in the single currency (1,1632 against the dollar): Frankfurt + 0,75% Paris +0,9%. The extra-euro price lists are also positive: London + 0,2% Zurich gain more than half a percentage point.
A separate discussion deserves the Spanish Stock Exchange, just below parity. The Prime Minister of Spain, Mariano Rajoy, has asked the Senate to approve measures to control the Catalan Parliament to thwart his secessionist ambitions. In Barcelona, deputies could pronounce the declaration of independence during the day.
Futures anticipate a robust start on Wall Street after the brilliant results announced on the closed stock market by some big names in technology: Amazon it beat expectations for earnings per share, with an abundant 6% increase in post-exchange trading. Microsoft beat the estimates thanks to the cloud area, after hours the stock was up 4%. Also A beat expectations, the stock was up 3%.
It is rising again among European techs Gemalto: +10% after four profit warnings in the last year.
The Btp/Bund spread trades at 152,6 basis points after the Ministry of the Economy placed all 6 billion euro of six-month BOTs. Yield dropped to new all-time low. The rate fell to -0,400% from -0,382%.
Il Petroleum Brent is at the highs of the last two years, trading at 59,4 dollars a barrel, slightly up, after +1,5% yesterday at the end. The Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, yesterday declared himself fully in favor of an extension of the production agreement expiring in March 2018.
The rally is not in favor Eni, down 1,15%. The oil company ended the quarter with 950 million euros of adjusted operating profit, down from 1,020 billion a year earlier and 100 million below consensus estimates, due to corporate structure costs. Better than expected the debt, which fell to 14,96 billion euros.
Down too Saipem (-0,3%). Tenaris (+0,62%) capitalizes the participation in the investment projects of the Argentine company Ypf. The interest rate effect favors the run of utilities. Enel (+0,7%) goes to the highest level since 2009 at 5,335 euros. This morning Banco Santander reiterated the Buy recommendation, raising the target to 5,90 euros from 5,15 euros. Italgas + 0,8%.
In Piazza Affari it shines Mediobanca (+2%) in the wake of the profit for the first quarter 2017-18 above expectations. The Piazzetta Cuccia group closed the first quarter of the 2017-2018 fiscal year with a net profit of 300,9 million, an increase of 11,2% compared to the same period of the previous year. The figure is higher than the consensus estimates of analysts, which predicted a profit of 260 million. No problem from the new criteria for NPLs envisaged by the new ECB legislation. On the contrary, the bank says it is ready to seize the opportunities that will emerge in the advisory and partnership activity with medium-small banks for Compass.
About participation in Generali (-0,69%), Alberto Nagel reiterated that the sale of 3% of the company remains the central scenario for the institute which, however, is also open to other options. Therefore, the hypothesis, in case of opportunity, of the transfer of the share in a vehicle to be shared with other investors, in which Piazzetta Cuccia would keep 51%, is not excluded.
Sales on other banks. The low interest rate scenario is not helping the sector. Unicredit -1,5% and Intesa -0,2%. Slow down at the end of the morning Mount Paschi (-1,06%).
In Europe, UBS rallied 2% after a 14% jump in third-quarter net profit, while remaining cautious on its outlook for the remainder of 2017. Royal Bank of Scotland rises by 2,7% after better results than forecasts.
Also brake stm -0,66% which consolidates yesterday's brilliant +12%. Ferragamo turns up 1,2% after hitting new lows for the year. Four analysts cut the target price. The other luxury titles also improve: Moncler + 1% Luxottica +2,75% leads Blue Chips and Tod’s + 1,8%.
