by Blandine Henault
PARIS (Reuters) – The main European stock markets are expected to rise but on a cautious note at the opening on Monday, against a backdrop of persistent concerns around the conflict between Israel and Hamas and ahead of a week rich in economic indicators and company results, without forgetting the meeting of the European Central Bank (ECB).
According to the first available indications, the Parisian CAC 40 could gain 0.24% at opening. Futures contracts report a gain of 0.12% for the Dax in Frankfurt, 0.03% for the FTSE in London and 0.07% for the Stoxx 600.
Fears surrounding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the threat of a spread of the conflict in the Middle East, combined with a surge in bond yields, have weighed heavily on the stock markets in recent days.
Over the last week as a whole, the CAC 40 lost 2.68%, its biggest weekly decline since the beginning of July, and the Stoxx 600 fell 3.1%, the largest decline since mid-March.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones recorded a weekly decline of 1.6%, the S&P 500 by 2.4% and the Nasdaq by 3.2%.
Investors hope that the season for publishing corporate results, which will accelerate this week, notably with American “big techs”, will provide support to the indices.
The ECB should opt for the status quo on its rates on Thursday but its speech on the future evolution of its monetary policy will be followed closely.
Also on the agenda for the week is the publication, on Thursday, of the first estimate of American GDP for the third quarter and that, on Friday, of consumer price figures in the United States for September, two crucial indicators before the next decision of monetary policy of the Federal Reserve on November 1.
A WALL STREET
Futures contracts signal a slight increase on Monday for the New York Stock Exchange after the sharp decline recorded on Friday, in a context of decline in financial and technological stocks against a backdrop of risk aversion fueled by the geopolitical context in the Middle East.
The Dow Jones index lost 0.86% to 33,127.28 points. The broader Standard & Poor’s 500 lost 1.26% to 4,224.16 points. The Nasdaq Composite fell 1.53% to 12,983.807 points.
IN ASIA
The Tokyo Stock Exchange fell 0.51% and briefly fell below the threshold of 31,000 points for the first time since October 6.
In mainland China, the large-cap CSI 300, which has already lost more than 4% last week, lost 0.6% and is at its lowest level since February 2019.
The composite index of the Shanghai Stock Exchange fell 0.86%, the lowest since the end of 2022.
In terms of values, Foxconn, one of Apple’s main suppliers, lost 2.9% while two sources close to the group confirmed on Monday that the company was the subject of a tax investigation in China.
RATES/EXCHANGES
The yield on ten-year Treasuries gained five basis points, to 4.9737%, after briefly exceeding the 5% threshold in recent days.
The dollar advanced 0.1% against a basket of reference currencies, and the euro fell 0.15% against the greenback, to 1.0577.
OIL
Oil prices fell by more than a dollar on Monday, as diplomatic efforts increased over the weekend to contain the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas.
Contracts last week were driven by fears of potential supply disruption if the war between Israel and Hamas escalates into a broader clash in the Middle East, the world’s largest oil-producing region. .
A barrel of Brent lost 1.1% to $91.13 and that of American light crude (WTI) dropped 1.35% to $86.89.
(Written by Blandine Hénault, edited by Bertrand Boucey)
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