(News Bulletin 247) – The Paris Stock Exchange closed up 0.83%, in low volumes. Initiatives were contained, in the absence of Wall Street, which remained closed for the American national holiday.

Like every July 4th, it’s the same old story. The Paris Stock Exchange has to deal with the absence of American operators. Fifteen days after “Juneteenth” – a contraction of “june” and “nineteenth” – a holiday recently instituted to commemorate the abolition of slavery at the federal level, American investors are once again on break for the national holiday, chosen in celebration of the Declaration of Independence (July 4, 1776) from the United Kingdom.

It is therefore in contained volumes – with 2.40 billion euros traded this Thursday – that the CAC 40 continued its rise, gaining 0.83% to 7,695.78 points. The Parisian index is nevertheless below its price before the dissolution of the National Assembly by 3.8%.

“Stock markets are moving higher in Europe on Thursday, with lower than usual volumes as investors hold their breath ahead of important macroeconomic developments later this week,” said Pierre Veyret, technical analyst at Activtrades.

Markets still value French debt

Despite the current political context, France has successfully passed a new test on the debt market. The Agence France Trésor, responsible for raising debt on the markets to finance the needs of the State, carried out a global auction of 10.5 billion euros of bonds this Thursday.

This has allowed a slight easing on the bond market, with the yield on 10-year French debt trading at 3.277%, after having moved to 3.30% at the start of the week.

“Traders and analysts have a lot on their plate for the end of the week. Between the UK general election, key US jobs reports and the second round of the French legislative elections, the situation could be difficult to assess for many,” he added.

The United Kingdom is indeed holding its general elections this Wednesday. But the suspense is quite low. A large victory seems promised to the Labour Party led by Keir Starmer, after 14 years of reign by the Conservatives (the “Tories”).

On the value side, the financial sector stood out. According to Bloomberg, Axa (+1.5%) and BNP Paribas (+1.9%) are studying the possibility of a merger of their asset management activities. Société Générale rose by 2.5%.

Outside the CAC 40, Pluxee fell 9.3% after revealing its third-quarter activity. Overall growth is in line with expectations, but the company is showing a slowdown in Europe.

Clariane jumped 7.80%, the day after the results of its capital increase with shareholders’ preferential subscription rights maintained, intended to strengthen its financial structure.

On other markets, the euro gained 0.3% against the dollar to $1.0813. Oil is sluggish. The September contract on North Sea Brent gained 0.2% to $87.48 a barrel, while the August contract on WTI listed in New York was stable at $83.91 a barrel.