The control room of Euronext, the company that manages the Paris Stock Exchange (AFP/Archives/ERIC PIERMONT)
The Paris Stock Exchange fell 0.49% on Wednesday in a session marked by inflation figures in the United States in line with expectations, investors taking the opportunity to take some profits after a good start to the year.
The star CAC 40 index fell 35.97 points to 7,361.20 points. The day before, it had yielded 0.59%.
Down during the first part of the session, the Parisian rating recovered in the wake of the publication of the data, before falling again shortly before the opening of the American markets.
“After an important indicator, investors always reposition themselves, so it is complicated to analyze very short-term movements,” explains Emmanuel Auboyneau, associate manager at Amplegest.
Highlight of the week, inflation in the United States proved to be in line with analysts’ expectations.
At its lowest for two years, inflation slowed slightly in April in the United States to 4.9% according to the CPI index, but remains very high and even accelerates in places, in particular on housing, used cars and gasoline at the pump.
“We avoided a bad surprise” because the latest figures were several times out of step with expectations “and the markets could have taken it very badly”, according to Mr. Auboyneau.
The figures go in the direction of the break initiated by the American central bank on the increase in its key rates for more than a year, its main tool to fight against inflation.
The bond market also reacted to these data and rates fell sharply. The yield on 10-year French government bonds ended at 2.86%, against 2.94% on Tuesday at the close.
In Europe, the President of the European Central Bank (ECB), in an interview published Wednesday in the Japanese press, left the door open to further rate hikes, in the face of inflation deemed still too high.
Investors are also still concerned about the soap opera of the US debt ceiling, still unresolved despite discussions between Republicans and Democrats.
Crédit Agricole at the top, Alstom at the bottom
The Crédit Agricole banking group published results above expectations in the first quarter, thanks to the record performance of its investment bank. The title took 5.04% to 11.71 euros. In its wake, Societe Generale advanced 1.13% to 21.91 euros but BNP Paribas fell 0.86% to 57.92 euros.
At the other end of the CAC 40, the Alstom stock fell 2.41% to 23.08 euros after having pushed back its medium-term objectives by one year. Rating agency Moody’s immediately lowered Alstom’s rating from “Baa2” to “Baa3”, giving it a stable outlook.
Casino debt pressure remains
Casino held its annual general meeting in a context heavy with uncertainty but without expressing itself on its future. Under the heavy fire of questions from shareholders evoking a “wall of debt” and demanding dividends, Casino has repeatedly assured that deleveraging was its “top priority”.
On Tuesday, the rating agency S&P lowered its credit rating and threatened a further downgrade due to “the growing likelihood of default”, in the absence of “favorable developments”. The action fell 5.95% to 6.72 euros. Since the start of the year, the stock has fallen by almost a third.
© 2023 AFP
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