BBVA announced the launch of an extraordinary share buyback program worth a total of 3,960 million euros, the largest undertaken by the financial institution to date. This announcement, detailed by the Spanish business press, marked one of the most notable corporate events within the Ibex 35, on a day in which the Spanish stock index reached an all-time high of 17,160.7 points shortly after opening. This figure was surpassed after a rise of 0.2% in the first hour of the session during the so-called “quadruple witching hour” of the year, as reported by the above-mentioned business media.
According to the trade press, the “quadruple witching hour” led to a significant increase in volatility on the European and American markets due to the simultaneous expiry of options and futures on indices and stocks. This phenomenon occurred in a context in which the stability of European monetary policy was strengthened by the European Central Bank’s decision to maintain interest rates and, in parallel, by the announcement of a rate cut by the US Federal Reserve. Both decisions influenced the management of positions and the rebalancing of portfolios of large institutional investors and had a decisive impact on the behavior of stock market-selective investors.
In this scenario of volatility and uncertainty, different Ibex 35 stocks showed different behaviors on the opening day. Banco Sabadell led the increases with a rise of 1.01%, followed by BBVA with 0.74%, CaixaBank with 0.58% and Acciona with 0.44%. Among those that saw declines, ArcelorMittal saw the largest decline, down 1.32%, and Telefónica fell 1%. According to Spanish media, these movements reflected the assets’ vulnerability to the high volatility environment due to both macroeconomic and business events.
The Spanish index remained at historic highs in an environment where central banks’ monetary policies raised expectations in financial markets in Europe and the United States. The business press reported that the day was accompanied by other relevant operations, such as that of CaixaBank, which completed at the end of the fourth week 16.36% of its share buyback program out of an authorized amount of 500 million euros.
At the corporate level, Fluidra announced the acquisition of the entire share capital of Variopool, a Dutch company, for a value of up to 21 million euros. According to the business press, this agreement contributes to the company’s strengthening and international expansion in the European sector.
According to the continent’s financial press, the European stock market day saw mixed behavior across major markets. The London stock market fell 0.13%, the Frankfurt stock market fell 0.04% and the Paris stock market fell 0.03%. Only Milan closed with a slight increase of 0.02%. These results are related to the influence of massive maturities of derivative products and caution regarding upcoming central bank decisions.
On the global energy market, both the European reference grade Brent and the American reference grade West Texas Intermediate (WTI) recorded price declines. According to the trade press, Brent was set at $59.54 with a decline of 0.5%, while WTI reached $55.74 after a similar decline. The global macroeconomic situation and demand forecasts continued to impact commodity behavior.
In the foreign exchange market, the euro strengthened against the dollar and opened at $1.1706. In addition, the required yield on the 10-year Spanish bond fell to 3.291%. The Spanish business press linked this adjustment to an increase in demand for Spanish government bonds, a consequence of the movements of institutional investors during the high activity session.
The session highlighted the convergence between business and macroeconomic factors, with central bank policy and the co-expiry of derivative financial products weighing on the performance of major indices. As the trade press noted, the Ibex 35 closed the week consolidating its position at historic highs, in an environment marked by the rebalancing of portfolios and the reconfiguration of large investment funds towards the end of the year.
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