(BFM Bourse) – The news is getting thinner and thinner as traders leave their trading screens for the Christmas break, but the CAC 40 is approaching its all-time high. Investors are already contemplating the volume of the gift: undeniably 2021 should be a great vintage for the tricolor index.
While the man in the red cloak (according to the imagery popularized, but not invented, by Coca-Cola), is undoubtedly doing a little warm-up trot with his reindeer at the time of his tour Friday evening, investors on the Parisian market already have a good idea of their gift: a first-rate performance for the CAC 40 this year. This Thursday, the barometer of the Parisian market added 0.77% to the gains of the two previous days, thus rising to 7,106.15 points, further from the historic record reached in November. The performance since the start of 2021 has thus risen to 27%, which is virtually the largest increase since 1999 (that year, the internet bubble had pushed the plug to + 51%).
Many operators are already looking forward to celebrating Christmas, some are already on their way to reach distant relatives, which is reflected in the volumes traded, limited to 2.6 billion euros.
The markets are taking a positive reading of the latest headlines relating to the pandemic, as a study in South Africa estimates that the risk of hospitalization from Omicron is 80% lower than with other variants, while researchers at Imperial College in London estimate hospitalizations 20% to 25% less frequent in people infected with Omicron than with the Delta variant. On the other hand, the FDA (the American Medicines Agency) has given authorization for the emergency use of the antiviral Paxlovid from the Pfizer laboratory. Clinical trials have shown definite therapeutic efficacy in reducing the risk of death in patients hospitalized with severe cases.
The New York Stock Exchange also continued to advance, the S&P 500 even heading towards midday across the Atlantic to a potential new all-time high. Among today’s statistics, household consumption rose slightly (+ 0.6%) in November, while the PCE price index (personal-consumption expenditures, a certain category of consumption, excluding food and energy) increased 4.7% year on year.
High frequency trading contract for 2CRSi
The ranking in Paris evolved Thursday in particular according to arbitrations on some of the values having fallen the most since the beginning of the year, like Renault which regained 2.1% by confirming the restructuring of its joint venture with Brilliance in China or to a lesser extent Worldline (+ 0.3%, which leaves almost 38% behind since January 1). Conversely, Hermès, the undisputed champion of 2021 – more than 73% ahead – fell 1.1% on Thursday.
In an ethical news, a few SMEs and mid-cap companies have brought more excitement, in particular the Strasbourg-based 2CRSi which won 4.7% after an order from a large American player in algorithmic trading. Carmat says he has identified the origin of the defect that led him to interrupt the implantations of his total artificial heart prosthesis and has recovered 2.4%.
In terms of currencies, the euro was little changed at 1.1316 dollars, while on the oil market a barrel of Brent grapples returned to 76 dollars, appreciating by 1%.
Guillaume Bayre – © 2021 BFM Bourse