The control room of Euronext, the company that manages the Paris Stock Exchange (AFP/Archives/ERIC PIERMONT)
The Paris Stock Exchange fell by 0.74% in the first exchanges on Thursday, suffering from the cautious position taken by the American Central Bank (Fed) regarding its next monetary policy decisions, and from the drop in TotalEnergies, heavyweight of the CAC 40.
The flagship CAC 40 index fell by 58.99 points to 7,925.94 points, around 9:45 a.m., the day after a public holiday. On Tuesday, it fell by 0.99%, posting a negative monthly balance (-2.69%) for the first time since October.
The CAC 40 is notably weighed down by the drop of 3.12% to 66.47 euros of TotalEnergies, the second most important company in the calculation of the index, while oil prices fell by more than 6% on the week.
“The US Central Bank has opted for a middle path, mentioning its frustration with recent inflation figures without officially qualifying inflation as too high,” said Florian Ielpo, head of macroeconomic research at Lombard Odier IM.
Investors have resigned themselves for several weeks to having to postpone the moment when the Central Bank will reduce its key interest rates for the first time.
The timing was considered June for most of the first quarter but is now seen as “September at the earliest” by Barclays analysts.
And “if inflation is higher than in our baseline scenario, we expect the first rate cut to be postponed until December,” they warn. December even seems “as likely” to them as September.
On the bond market, government interest rates were blowing a little: the interest rate on the 10-year French loan, the benchmark maturity, fell to 3.01% from 3.05% Tuesday at the close.
The Fed meeting is far from being the only event to occupy the markets this week, rich in indicators and company results.
Economic divergences in the world should “persist”, particularly between the United States and Europe, the OECD warned on Thursday, while counting on an improvement in global growth this year.
The final estimate of activity in industry in the euro zone in April is expected during the session.
On Friday, the official monthly US employment report for April will wrap up the week.
Teleperformance reassures
The global call center giant Teleperformance soared 12.75% to 96.38 euros, after its quarterly results deemed reassuring by analysts, in a difficult stock market context for more than two years.
ArcelorMittal in the green
The world’s second largest steelmaker ArcelorMittal returned to profit in the first quarter of 2024 after a net loss in the previous quarter, announcing on Thursday a net profit of $938 million thanks to better volumes and a recovery in prices. The action gained 1.06% to 23.84 euros.
© 2024 AFP
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