The Paris Stock Exchange erased most of its losses the day before, regaining more than 3%, some investors hoping that Western sanctions against Russia will have only a limited impact on the world economy. The market also takes note of information from the Interfax agency according to which Russia is ready to send a delegation at ministerial level to Minsk in order to begin discussions with Ukraine.
In closing, the Cac 40 more precisely took up 3.55% to 6,752.43 points in a volume of business still expanded by 6.8 billion euros. In New York, the Dow Jones gains 1.75% while the Nasdaq Composite 1%. At the worst of Thursday’s session, the index of major technology and growth stocks had fallen as much as 3.5% before ending with a gain of 3.3%. The one high-profile stat on the day’s schedule didn’t make an impact. The US core PCE index of personal consumption expenditure, the Fed’s most closely monitored inflation measure, accelerated by 0.3 points, as expected, to 5.2%, year on year in January, its largest 12-month increase since 1983.
“Limited disturbances”
” With oil back below $100 a barrel and gas prices retreating from yesterday’s surge, it looks like traders are anticipating limited disruption to Russian exports, whether as a direct result of the invasion or because of the sanctions imposed. This last option seems plausible insofar as the proposed sanctions did not, at the very least, really impress commented Craig Erlam, market analyst at Oanda.
The measures announced by the United States and the European Union are indeed not as strong as feared. The West has targeted banks and public companies more harshly, without going so far as to exclude Moscow from the Swift international banking system. Washington also did not want to directly target Russian gas and oil exports.
Vallourec soars, Casino falls
Saint Gobain grew by 6.3% after reporting record operating income in 2021. The group benefited from the dynamism of the construction sector in the United States and Asia and its exposure to the European renovation market . It also indicates that it has increased its prices in an attempt to offset the impact of inflation.
Engie and Veolia Environment gain respectively 5.1% and 6.7% like the Stoxx 600 of “utilities”, the best performance of the day in Europe. The pure-players renewable energies, such as Voltalia (+8.7%) and Neoen (+5.1%) also took advantage of the opportunities they offer to represent an alternative to Russian supplies. Securities linked to commodities, such as ArcelorMittal (+10%) and Eramet (+9.2%), also monopolized the best places of the day.
Vallourec jumped 25.9%, better performance of the SRD. The manufacturer of seamless tubes presented annual accounts that exceeded expectations, driven by a very good fourth quarter and strong demand in North America. Optimism is in order for 2022, thanks to the American dynamic and the surge in oil prices.
Valeo has, on the contrary, dropped by 12.2% after forecasts for 2022 considered too cautious by analysts, in particular those of RBC Capital, in particular in terms of gross operating surplus margin (EBITDA) and cash flow . The automotive supplier has presented its new “Move Up” strategic plan, which aims to increase its Ebitda margin to around 14.5% by 2025.
Casino fell 10.4% after falling in session to levels not seen in 30 years while the distribution group announced a sharp increase of nearly 20% in its net debt in France in 2021. The disposals will have to speed up.