by Claude Chendjou

PARIS (Reuters) – European stock markets ended slightly lower on Thursday in a consolidation movement after two consecutive sessions in the green, while on Wall Street the indices rebounded midway the day after a session in the red, the markets being generally in a wait-and-see context before the publication of the American employment report on Friday.

In Paris, the CAC 40 ended down 0.10% at 7,428.52 points. The British Footsie lost 0.02%. The German Dax, which hit a new record on Wednesday at 16,727.07 points, dropped 0.16%.

The EuroStoxx 50 index fell by 0.21% and the FTSEurofirst 300 by 0.26%. The Stoxx 600 lost 0.27%, returning from a four-month high reached on Wednesday. However, it is heading towards a fourth week in a row in the green.

The session in Europe was marked by profit taking in virtually all major sectors of the stock market, with the notable exception of basic resources which increased by 0.91%.

At the close in Europe, the Dow Jones gained 0.05%, the Standard & Poor’s 500 advanced 0.70% and the Nasdaq rose 1.22%, thanks in particular to Alphabet. The internet giant jumped 5.29% the day after the presentation of Gemini, its most advanced artificial intelligence (AI) model.

The communications services index on the S&P-500 gains 3.24%, while tech giants like Amazon and Apple gain 1.82% and 1.23%, respectively.

In addition to Alphabet, “tech” is supported by the prospect of a reduction next year in interest rates from the American Federal Reserve (Fed), which meets on December 12 and 13, in a context of relaxation on the labor market, pending Friday’s report on job creation, the unemployment rate, and wages in the United States.

Last week’s increase in weekly unemployment claims in the United States, figures from the ADP survey on job creation in the private sector and the “Jolts” report on job offers have revived optimism about the effectiveness of Fed policy tightening.

VALUES IN EUROPE

Sanofi ended down 1.2% after the presentation of the portfolio of its drug candidates while the group faces pressure from investors after abandoning its objectives for 2025.

Air France-KLM fell 3.06% after JPMorgan lowered its recommendation to “underweight”, while the transport and leisure index lost 0.21%.

Derichebourg jumped 4.35%, with the group saying it was targeting current Ebitda above 350 million euros for 2024, compared to 334.8 million reached during the 2022-2023 financial year.

Thyssenkrupp fell 5.38% as two sources reported that the German group may have to re-inject cash as part of a takeover of its steel division by Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky.

TODAY’S INDICATORS

German industrial production fell 0.4% in October compared to the previous month, the fifth consecutive monthly decline.

The 0.1% drop in economic activity in the euro zone in the third quarter was confirmed by Eurostat.

CHANGES

The dollar lost 0.43% against a basket of benchmark currencies after rising to a two-week high of 104.23 points on Wednesday.

The euro gained 0.25% to 1.0789 dollars but remained close to a low of around three weeks.

RATE

The yield on the ten-year German Bund ended up 1.8 basis points, at 2.193%, but hit its lowest session since the beginning of April, at 2.166%.

Its American equivalent of the same maturity is stable, at 4.1248%, against a 16-year high reached on October 23, at 5.021%.

Money markets are pricing in a 140 basis point cut in European Central Bank (ECB) rates and a 120 bps cut in Fed rates by the end of 2024, while Goldman Sachs now forecasts an ECB rate cut at each of its meetings starting in April 2024.

OIL

The oil market is generally stable but fears about Chinese demand continue to weigh on the day after a six-month low in prices: Brent fell by 0.05% to 74.26 dollars per barrel, while American light crude (West Texas Intermediate, WTI) advanced 0.12% to $69.46.

(Written by Claude Chendjou, edited by Tangi Salaün)

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