(Alliance News) – On Friday, at the midpoint of trading, major European stock exchanges are moving cautiously but remain in positive territory.

On the macroeconomic front, Italian retail sales in November showed growth compared to the previous month, rising both in value and in volume by 0.5% and 0.6%, respectively.

The increase affected both food goods, up 0.5%, and non-food goods, up 0.7%.

Additionally, in November, retail trade in the Eurozone showed a moderate improvement compared to the previous month.

According to Eurostat estimates released Friday, the volume of retail sales increased by 0.2% compared to October, following a 0.3% rise in the previous month.

On the geopolitical front, a possible “Trump corridor” could open for European companies stuck in Venezuela, previously unable to recover claims from Pdvsa due to the U.S. veto, with credits amounting to about USD3 billion each for Eni and Repsol.

Thus, the Mib is up 0.2% at 45,745.85 points, the Mid-Cap is up 0.2% at 60,659.04, the Small-Cap gains 0.1% to 37,620.15, and Italy Growth rises 0.1% to 8,833.31 points.

Paris’ CAC 40 is up 0.6%, Frankfurt’s DAX 40 gains 0.1%, and London’s FTSE 100 is up 0.5%.

In Milan, Amplifon leads purchases with a 3.1% rise to EUR13.785 per share. Stellantis also performs well, up 2.4% to EUR9.6375, and Brunello Cucinelli is up 1.7%.

Saipem – up 0.5% – has resumed operations of the Perro Negro 7 jack-up rig in Saudi Arabia starting January 2026. The company secured the contract for Perro Negro 7 in 2011, which was extended in June 2023 for 10 years. The contract was temporarily suspended in 2024 for 12 months.

Banca Mediolanum surpassed record inflows in 2025. Total net inflows reached EUR11.64 billion, up 11% from EUR10.44 billion in 2024.

Net managed savings inflows reached EUR9.06 billion, an 18% increase from EUR7.64 billion the previous year, while net administered savings inflows stood at EUR2.58 billion, down from EUR2.80 billion in 2024. The stock is down 0.2%.

UniCredit – down 0.4% – placed a senior bond with a 4.5-year maturity and callable after 3.5 years for a total of EUR1.25 billion. Additionally, the bank issued a 10-year senior preferred bond worth EUR750 million. Both issues were targeted at institutional investors.

Poste Italiane and Italgas close the basket with declines of 0.9% and 1.4%, respectively.

On the Mid-Cap, Ferretti announced on Thursday that Ferretti International Holding Spa acquired 205,000 ordinary shares of the company. The shares were bought at an average unit price of EUR3.1737, for a total value of EUR650,608.50. The stock is up 0.6%.

Sinochem is negotiating with Pirelli – up 0.7% – to avoid the use of Golden Power by the Italian government. The new phase in EU-China relations, due to U.S. hostility towards those doing business with Beijing, will see the Chinese state-owned company exit Bicocca after 10 years of collaboration and amicable relations.

Tinexta – up 0.1% – has established the “T-Defence” trust to proceed with the disposal of its stake in Tinexta Defence Holding, equal to about 85.5% of the share capital.

Intercos tops the list with a 4.1% gain, while BFF Bank stands out with a 1.6% decline.

On the Small-Cap, IGD SIIQ – down 1.0% – has chosen Evogy for an energy efficiency and smart building management project, which forms part of the group’s broader decarbonization and sustainability plan.

The board of EPH – with potential purchases up 23% – has appointed Fabio Ramondelli as CEO of the company, granting him broad powers for ordinary and extraordinary management, and Massimo Guerra as general manager.

Aeffe posts a 5.8% drop to EUR0.3185 per share, while FNM is up 3.6% to EUR0.524, topping the basket.

Among SMEs, Haiki+ announced the appointment of Fabio Patti as general manager of Haiki Metals and Carlo Emanuele Pepe as director of institutional relations. Haiki Metals is the group’s new business unit dedicated to the production of lead and lead alloys from spent batteries. The stock is down 0.9%.

Directa SIM – down 0.4% – has reached 137,568 clients, marking a 32% increase from the previous year. The total value of client assets reached EUR9.7 billion, a 47% increase from about EUR6.6 billion in December 2024.

CleanBnB – down 3.6% – reported management data for fiscal 2025, showing business growth compared to the previous year, despite a market environment the company described as particularly challenging.

In 2025, CleanBnB managed a total of 135,414 stays, up 8% from 125,264 stays in 2024. In the fourth quarter, managed stays totaled 29,450, up 1% from 29,048 in the same period the previous year.

TMP Group has acquired an add-on to existing contracts for the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in partnership with a leading global player in the event setup sector. The new contract is worth over EUR320,000, bringing the total order value to EUR2.0 million. The stock is down 2.9%.

Alantra has issued a ‘buy’ recommendation on Otofarma – up 1.2% – and raised the target price to EUR8.00 following a management change. Otofarma announced the appointment of Nicola Mottola as Chief Financial Officer.

In New York on Thursday, the Dow Jones gained 0.6%, the Nasdaq fell 0.4%, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.1%.

On the currency front, the euro is trading at USD1.1643 from USD1.1656 at Thursday’s European stock close, while the pound is trading at USD1.3404 from USD1.3431 last night.

Among commodities, Brent is trading at USD62.22 per barrel from USD61.14 per barrel at Thursday’s European stock close, while gold is valued at USD4,468.31 an ounce from USD4,454.95 an ounce last night.

On Friday’s economic calendar, at 1345 CET, ECB’s Lane will deliver a speech. From the U.S., at 1430 CET, the unemployment rate data will be released, while at 2130 CET, as usual on Fridays, the COT Report will be published.

By Michele Cirulli, Alliance News Reporter

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