President Trump`s conciliatory remarks on the trade front with China were not sufficient to significantly boost European indices, which closed the session slightly lower. Piazza Affari in Milan mirrored the cautious market sentiment; the Ftse Mib index finished with a modest decrease of 0.07%, although it remained above the 40,180 point level.
Across the continent, Madrid recorded the weakest performance with a 0.61% drop, followed by Paris (-0.36%) and Frankfurt (-0.16%). London, however, went against the trend, posting a slight gain of 0.13%.
In the bond market, the spread between Italian 10-year BTPs and German Bunds held steady at 91 basis points, the same level as the previous close. Earlier in the day, the differential had reached a low of 89.8 points, dipping below the 90-point threshold for the first time since February 2021.
In the currency market, the euro strengthened by 0.6% against the dollar, settling at 1.149.
Energy prices saw a rebound: the July natural gas futures contract gained 3.6%, closing at 35.9 euros/MWh. Oil also performed well, climbing above $66 a barrel with an increase of over two percentage points.
Among the leading stocks on the Milan exchange, Azimut stood out with a gain of 2.55%, followed by A2a (+1.95%), FinecoBank (+1.71%), and Unipol (+1.39%). Conversely, Nexi was weak, losing 2.47%, while Saipem dropped 2.07% and Mps fell 1.43%. Stellantis also experienced a slight decrease (-1.34%).
In the mid-cap segment, Philogen surged by 20.89%, followed by Alerion Clean Power (+3.28%), Sanlorenzo (+3.23%), and LU-VE Group (+2.24%). On the downside were Technoprobe, which fell 5.78%, and Garofalo Health Care, down 3.41%.
Focusing on football clubs listed on the stock exchange, it was a positive day for Juventus, which gained 1.02%. Meanwhile, the challenging period continued for Lazio, whose shares lost 1.96%.