The stock market’s flagship index reduced its lead after hitting an eight-week high, thanks to good corporate results in Europe and the United States. Major New York indices are hesitant at the start of the session, with traders already having their eyes fixed on July’s employment figures, which will be released tomorrow.
Weekly jobless claims rose by 6,000 to 260,000 across the Atlantic, as analysts expected, while the previous week’s balance was revised down from 256,000 to 254,000. However, the number of jobless claimants is hovering around its highest levels since November.
Shortly after 4 p.m., the Bedroom 40 rose by 0.58% to 6,509.41 points, after a peak at 6,555.71 (+ 1.29%) in a business volume of 1.4 billion euros. The star index in Paris, which made a good comeback, reduced its loss to 9% over the year, against 19.1% at the beginning of July. In New York, the Dow Jones lost 0.26%, while the Nasdaq Composite is stable after ending the previous day at a three-month high.
The Bank of England raises its voice
The more aggressive turn of the central banks is confirmed with the increase, in line with expectations, of 50 basis points in the repo rate of the Bank of England, now at 1.75%. It is its biggest rate hike since 1995 and the sixth since December 2021. The Old Lady of Threadneedle Street has also raised its inflation forecast to 13% year on year at the end of 2022, from around 10% estimated in May.
Conversely, the specter of a fall in demand for oil weighs on the barrel of Brent from the North Sea, which fell below the 95 dollar mark for the first time since mid-July, while in New York, the WTI is trading below the 90 dollar mark.
The attitude of the Fed and the question of the extent of its next monetary tightening seem to have been relegated to the background, although several central bank officials have warned against false hope, the key word remaining the fight against inflation. ” Absent clear signs of a return to positive macro momentum, the temporary boost in risk appetite may actually reinforce the possibility of another market relapse rather than signaling the end of the bear market “, indicate the strategists of Goldman Sachs.
Crédit Agricole better than expected, rumors about Ubisoft
Agricultural credit increased by 4.8%. Like BNP Paribas and Societe Generale, the green bank published results above expectations for the second quarter, thanks to a record level of activity in investment banking. BNP Paribas and Societe Generale follow with gains of 1.7% and 1% respectively.
Air France-KLM 2% advance while Lufthansa (+5.2% in Frankfurt) announced that it expects continued growth in its results thanks to a strong increase in demand. The German company anticipates in particular a “ significant growth of its third quarter results in sequential data.
HIS fall of 8.6%. The satellite operator declined to comment on the information from the FinancialTimes that he is discussing a possible merger with the American Intelsat. SES also confirmed its financial targets for 2022, after a first half supported by its Networks division and confirming the decline in video activities.
Finally, Ubisoft jumped 12% following rumors, relayed by Reuters, according to which the Chinese Tencent intends to strengthen its stake in the video game publisher, in which it took a 5% stake in 2018.