THE TREND
(Boursier.com) — Could investors have hoped for a better gift? The announcement of a further relaxation of health restrictions against the coronavirus in China, despite the surge in contamination, and in particular the forthcoming lifting of compulsory quarantine for people arriving in the country, is leading to a sharp rise in stock markets this morning. While Shanghai ended with a gain of 1%, the CAC40 won 1.14% at 6,579 points after 30 minutes of trading. Luxury is logically benefiting from this good news and pulling the Parisian market upwards.
The Chinese authorities have therefore decided to lift, as of January 8, the mandatory anti-Covid-19 quarantine for anyone entering its territory. The disease has also been downgraded to category B, such as anthrax or AIDS, whereas until now it was managed according to a category A protocol, such as cholera and bubonic plague. And rumors about new support measures for the local economy are circulating in trading rooms.
Something to relax the atmosphere to start this last week of the year which promises to be very calm in the absence of many speakers (several places including London and Sydney are still closed today). Business news is logically sparse and the macro agenda is hardly fuller with a few second-tier indicators to watch in the United States.
The euro/dollar pair reached $1.065 this morning. A barrel of Brent is trading at $84.2. An ounce of gold is traded at $1,807.
RISING VALUES
* Nanobiotix (+2.9% to 3.8 euros) announces that a first patient has been randomized in the United States in the NANORAY-312 trial, a global Phase 3 trial evaluating NBTXR3 in the treatment of elderly patients with locally advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck who are not eligible for platinum-based chemotherapy. NBTXR3 activated by radiotherapy will be evaluated alone or in combination with cetuximab. NBTXR3 is a potentially first-in-class radioenhancer with broad application in solid tumors, with priority given to head and neck cancer.
* LVMH climbed 1.8% to 686.2 euros, with Kering (+1.4% to 478.7 euros) and Hermes (+1.4% to 1,463 euros). The luxury compartment is sought after the latest announcements from Beijing in the fight against Covid-19. The lifting, from January 8, of the mandatory quarantine for anyone entering China marks an important step in the reopening of the country.
* TotalEnergies wins 1.5% to 60 euros in the wake of crude prices.
* Saffron (+1.2% to 119 euros) will pay 17.2 million dollars (16.2 million euros) as part of an agreement with the US Department of Justice to end an investigation into the payment of bribes in China by its subsidiaries, US authorities announced on Friday.
* Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield (+0.9% to 49.4 euros) has finalized the sale of ‘The Village’, an open-air commercial space located in the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles, to the Kroenke organization. The aggregate sale price is $325 million (100%, URW owns 55%). With this operation, URW has now completed disposals representing a total amount of 1.1 billion dollars on the other side of the Atlantic. They are part of the strategy to reduce the group’s financial exposure in the United States.
FALLING VALUES
* METabolic Explorer plunged 15% to 1.36 euros. The firm announced the signing, on December 23, of an agreement with its main partners securing the liquidity needed to execute the Group’s strategy and the 2023-2024 industrial transformation plan. This Agreement incorporates new financing enabling the Group to make the first investments needed to deploy its strategy without delay, to boost the sales forces, and to gradually resume production at the METEX NØØVISTAGO plant in Amiens, in order to guarantee its customers a local supply of amino acids and low-carbon functional solutions.
* Metavisio fall of 11.1% to 4 euros. The group announced on Friday that it was ending its discussions with SPAC SportsTek Acquisition. The two companies have “ended their exclusive negotiations and will not sign the contractual documents relating to the business combination. Metavisio shares will therefore remain listed on Euronext Growth in Paris”… And he indicates this morning to continue to discuss with several strategic partners in the United States in order to develop on the American market, the world’s leading market for computers and tablets, and to list Metavisio on an American stock exchange (NASDAQ or NYSE). Indeed Metavisio already generates 5% of its turnover in the United States, which is unique for a French computer hardware company, but this country should eventually represent the largest share of the company’s turnover. The firm has also just opened a 100% subsidiary in New Delhi in order to participate in Indian government public tenders and also distribute its computers to the general public in stores or on the Internet.