In the end, the data on US inflation was not enough to give breath to the European lists. Piazza Affari was no exception which, after a decisive initial acceleration in the wake of the publication of the CPI, retraced its steps and filed away its earnings. Thanks to the change of pace on Wall Street (after a positive start it turned red), the day saw the Ftse Mib finish trading at 26,027.07 points, showing a + 0.39%. The market mover of the day was undoubtedly the US inflation figure, the latest update before the Federal Reserve (Fed) meeting next week. In particular, US inflation as measured by the consumer price index rose by 5.3% in August, as expected, and slightly slower than the previous + 5.4%. On a monthly basis, the figure grew by 0.3%, less than the + 0.4% estimated and slowing compared to + 0.5% in July. However, real wages rose 0.3% on a weekly basis, more than the expected 0.1% decline.
Looking at the performance of the individual titles of the Ftse Mib, the best jersey was worn today by STMicroelectronics (+ 3.6%). The stock of the Italian-French chip group fell under the magnifying glass of Credit Suisse, which adjusted its estimates and target price upwards. The target price rises to € 46.5 from the previous € 41, with the rating remaining outperform. “We believe that STM remains well positioned for sustained growth, aiming for sales of $ 14.5 billion and EBIT margin close to 19% in 2023,” the experts report. They raised their heads today on the Amplifon Stock Exchange (+ 3.2%) which yesterday closed down sharply in the wake of the dissemination of strategic guidelines and financial objectives for the three-year period 2021-2023, and DiaSorin who scored a +2, 6% and has regained the threshold of 200 euros. A plus sign also for Stellantis (+ 0.7%) which, however, did not manage to close above the threshold of 17 euros. According to Bloomberg leaks, the automaker is engaged in a negotiation with Chinese partner Guangzhou Automobile Group Co. to take control of the Jeep-branded joint venture in China.
The trio of the worst, on the other hand, saw Saipem on the top step of the podium with a drop of 2.1% despite the positive performance of oil. Telecom Italia was also weak (-1.8%) and two big banks of the Ftse Mib, namely Banco Bpm (-1.3%) and UniCredit (-1.2%).