European equity markets showed limited movement at the midday mark, with Frankfurt leading gains at +0.7%, followed by London’s +0.4%. Paris, Milan, and Amsterdam each edged up 0.3%, while Madrid traded flat.
Attention now shifts to the Wall Street open and a flurry of afternoon US economic releases, starting with July’s non-manufacturing ISM index. Market speculation over a potential September Fed rate cut remains a key focus.
In energy markets, Dutch TTF natural gas fell 1% to €33.9/MWh, while oil declined 1.2% to $65.4 per barrel.
The euro dipped 0.2% against the dollar to $1.154. Meanwhile, the yield spread between Italian and German 10-year government bonds narrowed further, dipping below the psychological 80-basis-point threshold to a daily low of 79.5 bps – levels unseen since 2010.
The Italian Treasury bond yield stands at 3.43%. The recent compression in spreads primarily reflects rising German bond yields, though Italy’s rate remains above comparable Spanish, Portuguese, and Greek debt.
On Milan’s FTSE MIB, Amplifon surged 3.4% while Leonardo advanced 2.4%. Banking stocks moderated after yesterday’s rally: Mediobanca gained 0.8%, while Bper and Monte dei Paschi di Siena fell 0.7%, currently the weakest performers in the main index.
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