PARIS (Reuters) – The main European stock markets are moving up cautiously on Tuesday morning, investors wondering about the impact of the surprise decision of the OPEC + countries to cut their production while an inflation indicator in the euro zone should be published during the day.

In Paris, the CAC 40 took 0.13% to 7,355.15 around 07:40 GMT, in a volatile session with a high of 7,384 points, close to the historic record of 7,401.15 points reached on March 6. In London, the FTSE 100 advances by 0.32% and in Frankfurt, the Dax gains 0.19%.

The EuroStoxx 50 index nibbles away at 0.06%. The FTSEurofirst 300 and the Stoxx 600 each rose by 0.26%.

Futures contracts on Wall Street point to a slightly lower opening with the Dow Jones down 0.11%, the Standard & Poor’s 500 down 0.07% and the Nasdaq down 0.22% as the ISM manufacturing index for March, published on Monday, fell to 46.3, its lowest level in nearly three years.

This raises fears of a recession but also revives the scenario of a pause in rate hikes.

In the euro zone, where the market is now expecting a peak in European Central Bank (ECB) rates around 3.6% in November against a deposit rate currently at 3%, producer price figures for the month February, forecast at 09:00 GMT, should show an ebb of inflationary pressures (+13.3% over one year against 15.0% in January), according to the Reuters consensus.

On the stock market, the banking compartment (+0.44%) continues its recovery after the crisis linked in particular to Credit Suisse (+0.8%) which is holding its general meeting on Tuesday. In Paris, BNP Paribas (+0.69%) achieves the best performance among the banks, while Publicis (+0.89%) is at the top of the Parisian index.

The European automotive sector (+0.33%) is also in demand with Renault (+0.769%) and Stellantis (+0.5%) in particular. The Franco-Italian-American automaker on Tuesday reaffirmed its goal of becoming the European leader in leasing with a fleet of one million vehicles by 2026 and a doubling of its net banking income by 2030, to 5 .8 billion euros.

The oil and gas sector (+0.06%), despite taking profits, continues to benefit from the decision of OPEC + to reduce its production: TotalEnergies gains 0.24%, while Brent takes 0, 88% to $85.68.

Bayer advances by 0.34%, the American justice having dismissed Merck & Co which estimated that the German group is now responsible for the problems related to talc.

(Written by Claude Chendjou, edited by Kate Entringer)

Copyright © 2023 Thomson Reuters