Monday’s 4% tumble is just a bad memory. Or almost. Thanks to two sessions of rise in a row, including a gain of 2.11% on Wednesday, the Bedroom 40 fell to 6,981.96 points, less than 90 points from its closing level on Friday. Investors took advantage of the recent “sell off” to make purchases on the cheap, before the publication, at 8 p.m., of the press release from the monetary policy committee of the American Federal Reserve (Fed). Will it dare to take the market on the wrong foot and adopt a more aggressive monetary policy than expected? It is unlikely, even if inflation, at its highest for almost 40 years, is a subject of concern for the institution.
Decline in fear index
Experts continue to bet on the announcement of a rise in interest rates Fed-funds, the first since 2018, by 25 basis points in March. Three more increases should follow by the end of the year, according to the market forecast. ” The time to relax is probably near for the hawks as the Fed has nothing to gain from sending ‘hawkish’ messages today, battered equity markets won’t help them turn around the inflation situation », summarizes Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote. According to them, the “hawkish” expectations are certainly exaggerated, the Fed not being able to trigger a financial crisis to solve the problem of inflation. ” We are more likely to face a confident and again reassuring Fed in today’s announcement. If the Fed wants to continue its more aggressive stance, it needs to take control of risk appetite “. The question of reducing the size of the balance sheet is also on the table.
In a sign of some easing, the Vix index, or fear index, which measures the underlying volatility of the S&P 500, fell back to 29.44 points after hitting a one-year high of 38.94. Monday. On the equity side, the Dow Jones regains 1% and the Nasdaq Composite 2.15% after declines of 5.6% and 13.5% respectively since the 1er January. The publications of Microsoft(+4%)and Texas Instruments (+4.5%) reassured. Both unveiled quarterly results above expectations and optimistic forecasts. What about Intel and Tesla? The two groups are at work this evening, before the Californian giant Apple on Thursday evening.
In Paris, Renault accelerated, gaining 5.93%, leading the Cac 40. A press conference of the alliance formed with Nissan and Mitsubishi Motor must take place tomorrow. It should be the occasion to announce an investment plan of more than 23 billion dollars over five years in the development of electric vehicles, according to sources quoted by Reuters.
Orpéa falls again
Cac 40 heavyweight, TotalEnergies advanced by 4% in the wake of oil prices, the barrel of Brent is flirting with 90 dollars.
Airbus won 5.43%. The aircraft manufacturer’s Airbus Helicopters division recorded 414 net orders and delivered 388 in 2021, compared to 300 in 2020. Morgan Stanley reiterated its recommendation to “outperform” the stock to target 135 euros.
Imerys takes 7.4%. The company, which extracts and sells minerals to industry, is considering selling its “high temperature solutions” business, according to the Bloomberg news agency.
Finally, Orpea lost another 20.88%, bringing its plunge since Monday to 47.1%. The government is considering sanctions in the event of proven breaches after the publication, this Wednesday, of the book-investigation “The gravediggers” denouncing abuses of mistreatment in the nursing homes managed by the group.
PC