Market Overview
European stock markets, including Milan’s Piazza Affari, ended the session higher, driven by a rebound in energy shares and positive sentiment around corporate earnings. Brent crude rose to $93 a barrel, highlighting inflation and geopolitical risks.
Corporate Earnings and AI Focus
Investors are closely watching upcoming results from Alphabet, Tesla, IBM, and Texas Instruments. Analysts from TP Icap Midcap noted that attention is shifting toward management commentary on AI demand, hyperscaler capital investments, cloud infrastructure, and digital platforms. Historically, a small group of companies delivering tangible AI ROI has propelled equity gains, mitigating concerns over geopolitics, oil price spikes, and potential U.S. tariffs.
Macro Data
UK inflation slowed more than expected in June 2026. The Office for National Statistics reported consumer prices up 0.1% monthly, matching forecasts but down from +0.2% in May. Annual growth eased to 2.6%, below the expected 2.7% and May’s 2.8%.
Notable Corporate Results
- Santander: Q2 underlying net profit +17% YoY, boosted by revenue and two months from TSB, partially offset by higher provisions.
- Iberdrola: Confirms full-year outlook, driven by investments in electricity networks in the UK, U.S., and Brazil, lifting first-half profits.
Commodities and Currencies
EUR/USD remained stable at 1.141. Gold gained 1.97%, while WTI crude rose 2.03%. The 10-year BTP yield edged up 1 basis point to 4.00%, with the spread at +82 bps.
European Index Performance
- Frankfurt: +0.58%
- London: +1.24%
- Paris: +0.89%
- Piazza Affari: FTSE MIB +0.93% to 52,792 points; FTSE Italia All-Share +0.93%
Milan Stock Highlights
Top performers included Inwit (+3.97%), Tenaris (+3.02%), Banca MPS (+2.40%), and Banca Mediolanum (+2.32%). Major decliners were Prysmian (-1.65%), Banco BPM (-0.89%), Lottomatica (-0.73%), and DiaSorin (-0.62%). FTSE MidCap leaders were IREN (+4.06%), Banco Desio (+3.86%), Acea (+3.43%), and MARR (+2.72%), while Technogym (-3.40%), WIIT (-2.80%), Banca Ifis (-2.37%), and De’ Longhi (-2.23%) lagged.