European markets open to close; sterling slumps against the dollar

Shares of Swiss heating and ventilation manufacturer Belimo Holding climbed more than 7% in early trade after Berenberg upgraded the stock to “buy” and increased its price target, citing rising demand for home renovation.

At the bottom of the Stoxx 600, German chemical company K+S fell 8%.

– Elliot Smith

Italians are on course to elect the country’s first female prime minister and the first government led by the far-right since the end of World War II.

Giorgia Meloni’s Fratelli d’Italia (Brothers of Italy) party are set to gain 26.4% of the vote, according to an exit poll early Monday morning. The party is in a broad right-wing coalition with Lega, under Matteo Salvini, Silvio Berlusconi’s Forza Italia and a more minor coalition partner, Noi Moderati.

This alliance is set to win 44.43% of the vote, according to exit polls, enough to gain a parliamentary majority with the center-left bloc on 26.57%. Early projections from the actual election results are due Monday morning.

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Morningstar has revealed its pick of global stocks with the highest dividend yields, saying they stand out in an environment where many companies may not be able to maintain their dividends due to “economic strain.”

Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Ganesh Rao

Heading into the final week of trading for September, the Dow and S&P 500 are each down about 6% for the month, while the Nasdaq has lost 8%.

Both the Dow and S&P are now sitting 1.2% and 1.6%, respectively, above their lows from mid-June. The Nasdaq is 2.9% above its low.

European stocks are expected to open in negative territory on Wednesday as investors react to the latest U.S. inflation data.

The U.K.’s FTSE index is expected to open 47 points lower at 7,341, Germany’s DAX 86 points lower at 13,106, France’s CAC 40 down 28 points and Italy’s FTSE MIB 132 points lower at 22,010, according to data from IG.

Global markets have pulled back following a higher-than-expected U.S. consumer price index report for August which showed prices rose by 0.1% for the month and 8.3% annually in August, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Tuesday, defying economist expectations that headline inflation would fall 0.1% month-on-month.

Core CPI, which excludes volatile food and energy costs, climbed 0.6% from July and 6.3% from August 2021.

U.K. inflation figures for August are due and euro zone industrial production for July will be published.

— Holly Ellyatt