Italy Harmonised Inflation Rate YoY Final

Italy Inflation Rate YoY Final

Italy Inflation Rate MoM Final

Italy Harmonised Inflation Rate MoM Final

Frankfurt's DAX 40 edged up to around 24,100 on Thursday, hovering near one-week highs, amid optimism regarding the evolution of the conflict in the Middle East. Recent reports indicated the US and Iran may extend their ceasefire by two weeks to allow more time to negotiate a peace agreement, the terms of which would include the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and measures regarding Iranian nuclear enrichment. Meanwhile, the US naval blockade continues to restrict traffic in the key oil transit route. Attention was also on the earnings season. The tech sector was the best-performing sector, buoyed by gains in semiconductor ASML. SAP and Infineon advanced 1.6% and 1.4%, respectively.

DAX Nudges Higher

The FTSE 100 edged slightly higher on Thursday but remained largely unchanged for a sixth straight session as investors weighed an uncertain outlook for the Iran conflict and ongoing peace talks. On the economic front, the UK economy grew 0.5% in February, well above expectations of 0.1%. Tesco gained more than 3% after reporting solid sales and profit growth, announcing a £500 million buyback and widening its guidance range due to geopolitical uncertainty. Entain rose over 4% after maintaining its outlook for net gaming revenue growth. Mining stocks also advanced, with Rio Tinto up 2.2% and Anglo American gaining 1.6% following strong Chinese data. On the downside, EasyJet fell more than 1.5% after a cautious trading update citing uncertainty from the Middle East conflict, while Rentokil slipped around 1% despite maintaining its annual guidance after steady first quarter performance.

FTSE 100 Trades Cautiously Higher

European stocks edged higher on Thursday, with the STOXX 50 rising 0.4% and the STOXX 600 gaining 0.2%, as investors continued to monitor developments in the Middle East, where reports suggest the US and Iran are considering a two-week extension of the ceasefire to allow more time for peace negotiations. The current truce is set to expire next week. However, shipping through the Strait of Hormuz remains suspended, with the US naval blockade still in place. Attention also turned to corporate earnings. ASML shares climbed more than 2%, supported by strong results from key customer TSMC. SAP (+0.8%) and Prosus (+2%) also posted gains, while Tesco surged over 3% after reporting robust underlying performance. On the downside, TotalEnergies slipped 0.5% despite indicating a solid Q1 and Pernod Ricard declined 1.4% after warning that disruptions linked to the Middle East war could lead to an annual sales drop of up to 4%.

European Stocks Edge Up, Earnings in Focus

The FTSE 100 Index is up by 23 points or 0.22 percent on Thursday. Top gainers are Entain (4.17%), Tesco (3.04%) and Halma (2.83%). Biggest losses came from Unite Group (-2.53%), Airtel Africa (-1.83%) and Vodafone (-1.59%).

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