(News Bulletin 247) – The Paris index lost ground this Thursday at mid-session, as the market digests a new wave of results as well as the outcome of the meeting of the American Federal Reserve.

The CAC 40 fell back below 7,500 points this Thursday. The flagship index of the Paris Stock Exchange fell 0.8% to 7,472.79 points at mid-session, as investors digested a new wave of corporate results as well as announcements from the American Federal Reserve (Fed).

Unsurprisingly, the US central bank left its key rates unchanged on Wednesday evening. But the comments of the institution and its chairman, Jerome Powell, seem to have given credibility to the scenario of a rate cut in September.

“Jerome Powell indicates that a rate cut in September is ‘on the table’ and it would now take very bad inflation figures to prevent this,” notes Bastien Drut, head of strategy and economic studies at CPR AM.

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Société Générale once again in trouble

“The Fed does not want an explicit pre-commitment but is preparing to lower its key rate. The meeting in Jackson Hole on August 20-24 will provide more clear signals regarding action in September,” emphasizes Thuy Vân Pham, economist at Groupama Asset Management.

Investors are mostly busy analyzing corporate results. Société Générale is plunging again (-7.7%), the French retail bank having disappointed again. The company has also lowered its projection of net interest margins in France for 2024. Conversely, Crédit Agricole SA is up 0.6% after delivering solid accounts in the second quarter.

Outside the CAC 40, Worldline collapsed (-16%) after lowering its targets for 2024, citing uncertainties over consumption in Europe.

Eurobio Scientific is taking 34.6%, driven by a proposed public takeover bid (OPA) by a consortium, which should result in the in vitro diagnostics specialist being delisted.

On other markets, the euro lost 0.3% against the dollar to $1.0794. Oil continued its recovery. The October contract for North Sea Brent rose 1% to $81.63 a barrel, while the September contract for WTI listed in New York stagnated at $78.68 a barrel.