by Claude Chendjou
PARIS (Reuters) – European stock markets ended in the red on Thursday and on Wall Street two of the three main indices were also down mid-session amid profit taking, particularly in the technology sector, against a backdrop of rising prices. bond yields.
In Paris, the CAC 40 ended down 0.72% at 7,260.53 points. The British Footsie lost 0.43% and the German Dax lost 0.79%.
The EuroStoxx 50 index fell by 0.73% and the FTSEurofirst 300 by 0.63%. The Stoxx 600, down for the third session in a row, fell to a three-week low, yielding 0.63%.
A sign of market nervousness, the volatility index on the EuroStoxx 50 fluctuated from 19 points to more than 21 points, reaching a peak since early May at 21.32 points.
In the United States, the Vix, which hit a two-month high, advanced to 16.3 points.
Since Tuesday’s downgrade of the United States’ sovereign rating by Fitch, investors have been looking to move away from risky assets, but according to some analysts the market’s reaction to the agency’s decision rating is mostly a pretext for profit taking after the recent equity rally.
“It has now been 112 days since the S&P-500 recorded an intraday decline of at least 2%, which is the longest streak since February 2020. A correction in a complacent market is long overdue,” writes David Rosenberg, market strategist and founder of Rosenberg & Associates.
At the time of the close in Europe, the Dow Jones fell 0.1% and the Standard & Poor’s 500 0.15%, while the Nasdaq gleaned 0.08%.
The index of technology stocks, sensitive to changes in interest rates, was volatile before the publication of quarterly results from Apple (-0.37%) and Amazon (+0.40%), expected after the close.
Qualcomm fell 9.49% on a current quarter sales forecast that fell below expectations, while Paypal plunged 11.33% as its quarterly operating margin was deemed disappointing.
Excluding technology, Moderna took 0.63% thanks to the increase in its forecast for annual sales of vaccine against COVID-19.
VALUES IN EUROPE
Numerous company publications have animated the exchanges in Europe, including Société Générale, which gained 3.47% after a quarter that was better than expected.
The world’s largest brewer Anheuser-Busch InBev advanced 1.29% after posting quarterly profit above expectations and confirming its annual forecast.
On the downside, Lufthansa fell 5.47% as the German airline group reported adjusted free cash flow below expectations, while Infineon fell 9.33% on a lower forecast. of its revenues for the current quarter. In its wake, STMicroelectronics lost 2.72%.
THE INDICATORS OF THE DAY
The slowdown in economic activity in the zone worsened more than expected in July, with a composite PMI index at 48.6 against 49.9 in June, show the final results of the monthly survey carried out by S&P Global among purchasing managers (PMI).
In Britain, service sector activity slowed in July to its lowest level since January, with the PMI reading at 51.5, down from 53.7 in June.
The services sector in the United States decelerated in July, while prices accelerated, suggesting that it will take longer than expected to bring inflation back towards the Fed’s 2% target, shows the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) survey.
CHANGES
The dollar is back (-0.09%) from a four-week peak against a basket of benchmark currencies including the euro after the latest indicators of the day, pending the publication of the official US employment report on Friday.
The euro is trading at $1.0948 (+0.11%)
The pound sterling is stable at 1.2709 dollars after the decision of the Bank of England (BoE) to raise its key rate to 5.25%, the highest for 15 years.
RATE
Long-term bond yields in the eurozone ended higher, with the ten-year German Bund taking 4.6 basis points to 2.553%, after hitting a session high since July 12 at 2.566%.
In the United States, the yield on ten-year Treasuries was 4.1812%, up 11.5 basis points, a nine-month peak.
OIL
Oil prices are supported by Saudi Arabia’s decision to extend the drop in its production to September: the barrel of Brent takes 1.95% to 84.82 dollars and American light crude 2.24% to 81, $27.
TO BE FOLLOWED ON FRIDAY:
(Written by Claude Chendjou)
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