European stock markets reopened with positive momentum following the Easter break, although Milan`s main index, the Ftse Mib, experienced a slight downturn, closing down 0.09% at 35,947 points. The day`s trading in Milan was influenced by dividend payments from several high-capitalization companies.
Across the continent, other markets showed favorable performance. London led the increases, rising 0.64%, closely followed by Amsterdam (+0.59%) and Madrid (+0.72%). Paris also saw gains, progressing 0.56%, while Frankfurt was up 0.41%.
The spread between Italian 10-year BTPs and German Bunds remained largely stable, concluding the day at 116.6 basis points, a slight decrease from the opening level of 117.9. The yield on the Italian benchmark bond settled at 3.6%. Meanwhile, the Euro weakened against the US Dollar, falling by approximately half a percentage point to trade at 1.145.
In commodity markets, the Euro/USD currency pair continued trading just below parity, showing a decrease of 0.29%. Gold maintained stability, holding its previous value at $3,425.9 per ounce. A notable increase was observed for Light Sweet Crude Oil, which jumped 2.42%.
Among the key stocks on the Milan exchange (Piazza Affari), Prysmian recorded the most significant drop, falling 3.31% to 42.6 euros. This decline was reportedly linked to market rumors regarding a potential halt in the construction of new data centers by Amazon, a major client. Other stocks in negative territory included Mediolanum (-2.06%) and Buzzi (-1.91%). Fineco showed uncertainty, losing 1.11%. Weakness was also noted for Leonardo (-0.91%) and Interpump (-0.78%).
The banking sector displayed mixed results. Banco Bpm (-0.58%) and Mps (-0.35%) experienced slight declines, while Unicredit closed positively with a gain of 0.27%. Other financial stocks generally trended upwards, with Generali increasing by 1.46% ahead of its upcoming shareholder meeting.
Strong gains exceeding two percentage points were registered by utilities and infrastructure stocks such as Terna (+2.11%), Inwit (+2.19%), and Italgas (+2.23%). Telecom Italia (Tim) led the risers among major stocks, closing up 2.29%.
In the Italian mid-cap segment, Salvatore Ferragamo stood out with a substantial rise of 7.10%. Other notable increases included Banco di Desio e della Brianza (+3.68%), BFF Bank (+3.20%), and Ascopiave (+2.48%). Conversely, WIIT saw a significant drop of 5.04%, Anima Holding lost 4.03%, and MFE (Mediaset) shares MFE B and MFE A fell by 2.90% and 2.5% respectively.
Specifically concerning football club stocks, Juventus enjoyed a positive trading day, gaining 1.73%. In contrast, Lazio shares declined by 1.93%.