(Correction to paragraph 8 of Klass Knot’s comments)

PARIS (Reuters) – The main European stock markets are trading sharply lower on Wednesday morning, penalized in particular by disappointing Chinese growth figures and a re-acceleration of inflation in the United Kingdom while investors await other economic indicators in the daytime.

In Paris, the CAC 40 lost 1.08% to 7,318.05 points around 07:40 GMT. In London, the FTSE 100 fell by 1.34% and in Frankfurt, the Dax lost 0.91%.

The EuroStoxx 50 index fell by 0.96%, the FTSEurofirst 300 by 1.04% and the Stoxx 600 by 1.07%.

Futures contracts on Wall Street also forecast a drop of 0.31% for the Dow Jones, 0.44% for the Standard & Poor’s 500 and 0.64% for the Nasdaq the day after a falling session. under the influence of mixed results from American banks.

Investors are moving away from risky assets as China’s gross domestic product (GDP) in the fourth quarter (+5.2%) was lower than analysts’ forecasts. Retail sales (+7.4%) in China for the month of December also fell short of expectations, while China’s population declined in 2023 for the second consecutive year, to 1.409 billion people.

In Europe, while awaiting the publication at 10:00 GMT of final consumer price figures in the euro zone, inflation in Great Britain re-accelerated in December, to 4.0% over one year, a pace higher than expectations, a sign persistent pressure on prices.

In the United States, the main expected indicator concerns monthly retail sales, forecast at 1:30 p.m. GMT, while on the interest rate side, many officials of the American Federal Reserve (Fed), like Christopher Waller, are working to temper expectations of a fall in the cost of credit.

At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde said the fight against inflation was not yet won, while the governor of the Dutch central bank, Klass Knot judged the markets too far ahead of a rate cut.

In terms of values, luxury giants LVMH and Kering, exposed to China, fell by 1.39% and 2.08% respectively.

Worldline takes 1.98% in reaction to reports from Reuters that the payments group is examining its options to reassure shareholders and avoid a hostile takeover bid.

Numerous company publications are also driving discussions, notably Renault which fell by 1.78% despite a 9% increase in its global sales volume in 2023. According to traders, the price reduction decided by Tesla in Germany on some of its models weigh on the entire automotive sector.

Elsewhere in Europe, Just Eat Takeaway (+1.86%) resisted the downward trend after the meal delivery company published a full-year adjusted operating profit forecast above the previously announced objective.

(Correction to paragraph 8 of Klass Knot’s comments)

(Written by Claude Chendjou)

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