World stock markets lost ground on Tuesday after the announcement of Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, which further strains relations between the United States and China.
European markets ended down, Paris lost 0.42%, Frankfurt 0.23% and Milan 0.35%. Only London remained in balance, at -0.06%.
In the United States, Wall Street was more mixed. After opening in the red, the Dow Jones lost 0.46% but the Nasdaq gained 0.27% around 4:00 p.m. GMT. For its part, the S&P500 evolved to equilibrium, at +0.02%.
The downward movement was initiated in the morning by the Asian stock markets, which fell sharply, in the face of the possible visit of the head of the American deputies.
All day, the markets’ eyes have been on Ms. Pelosi’s plane. On FlightRadar24, more than 300,000 people monitored the flight at the same time, causing a computer “bug” on the site.
Quickly after her arrival, Nancy Pelosi insisted on the “unconditional support” of the United States for Taiwan, while Beijing, which claims ownership of the territory, described its attitude as “extremely dangerous”.
“Any disruption to Taiwanese trade as a result of these tensions may aggravate difficulties already felt in global supply chains,” particularly in semiconductors, of which Taiwan is a major exporter, said CMC analyst Michael Hewson. Markets.
Geopolitical news came on top of an uncertain context for the markets, as the season for the publication of half-yearly corporate results is ending and investors are once again turning to the bleak macroeconomic indicators.
“The American economy is slowing down and we are trying to see if the recession will only be technical or if it will be a real recession,” commented Alexandre Baradez, analyst for IG France, to AFP.
The tightening of central bank monetary policies is also being scrutinized. The central bank of Australia notably raised its main interest rate on Tuesday by half a percentage point.
BP is on the rise
British giant BP soared 2.80%, after posting net profit tripled year on year in the second quarter to $9.26 billion, and a 10% rise in the dividend for the period, driven by the explosion of hydrocarbons.
Oil prices rose again on Tuesday a few days before the OPEC + alliance meeting, after a significant drop the day before.
Around 4:00 p.m. GMT, a barrel of Brent from the North Sea, for delivery in October, rose above 100 dollars, to 101.15 dollars, up 1.13%.
The barrel of American West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for delivery in September took 1.01% to 94.84 dollars.
Uber and the automobile in the green
Uber on Tuesday reported revenue of $8.1 billion, well beating market forecasts, despite a net loss of $2.6 billion in the second quarter. As of 3:50 p.m. GMT, it was up 15.87% to $28.50.
The stocks of car manufacturers also ended the day positively: in Frankfurt, BMW gained 0.98%, Volkswagen 1.56% and Mercedes 0.08%, while in Paris Stellantis gained 1.62 % .
On Wall Street, Tesla took 2.50% around 3:50 p.m. GMT.
Luxury worried about the situation in China
The renewed tensions in China on Tuesday lowered luxury stocks, which make a large part of their turnover in the country.
The Italian fashion group Tod’s lost 2.44% in Milan, Burberry 2.41% in London and the French LVMH and Kering fell 1.35% and 1.70% respectively.
Adler continues to crumble
German real estate giant Adler continued to fall on Tuesday and ended the day down -4.29%, having already lost 4.40% the previous day.
Financial sector supervisor Bafin said on Monday that the group’s 2019 balance sheet, in turmoil after accusations of fraud, was overstated by at least 170 million euros.
On the side of currencies and bitcoin
The euro lost ground against the dollar, a safe haven in a context of geopolitical tensions. The single currency lost 0.65% to 1.0196 dollars around 4:00 p.m. GMT.
Bitcoin lost 0.63% to $22,983.
© 2022 AFP
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