by Claude Chendjou

PARIS (Reuters) – Major European stock markets closed higher on Friday, the last day of a tumultuous week marked by fears over the U.S. economy and the strength of the yen.

In Paris, the CAC 40 ended with a gain of 0.31% at 7,269.71 points. The British Footsie advanced by 0.28% and the German Dax gained 0.12%.

The EuroStoxx 50 index rose by 0.05%, the FTSEurofirst 300 by 0.57% and the Stoxx 600 by 0.57% as well. The latter index was driven in particular by basic resources (+0.6%) and real estate (+1.77%), which allowed it to erase all the losses suffered at the beginning of the week.

Over the week as a whole, the Stoxx 600 gained 0.27% and the CAC 40 0.24%.

At the time of the European close, the Dow Jones was up 0.04%, the Standard & Poor’s 500 0.18% and the Nasdaq 0.06% after all briefly going into negative territory.

At the end of a hesitant session, due to the lack of new catalysts, stock market indices in Europe also alternated between one foot in the red and another in the green before closing on a positive note, a sign of investor caution.

The volatility indices on Wall Street and the EuroStoxx, although falling, remain at high levels, around 22 and 20 points respectively.

After the unemployment benefit claims figures in the United States which partly reassured about the American economy while an imminent recession had been feared since the beginning of the week, the market is waiting for new macroeconomic indicators expected next week. Consumer prices and retail sales in the United States should in particular revive the thesis of a soft landing of the American economy and a decline in inflation at the risk of disappointing.

In Japan, where the recent market crisis also started after the sudden surge in the yen, preliminary figures for second-quarter economic growth in the archipelago, due on Wednesday, are also expected.

EUROPEAN VALUES Eutelsat fell 2.12% after reporting weak outlook despite an increase in its annual revenue.

Software provider Esker rose 9.24% after news that Bridgepoint (+0.51%) could acquire the Lyon-based group.

LEG Immobilien, one of Germany’s largest listed real estate groups, jumped 5.45% after posting a second-quarter net loss smaller than a year earlier, amid a slump in the sector.

Generali fell 1.90% after reporting first-half results that were marked by weak performance in the property and casualty (P&C) insurance segment.

TODAY’S INDICATORS

The only major statistic of the day, inflation in Germany stood at 2.6% over one year in July, according to Destatis, confirming the first estimate of this index.

CHANGES The dollar index fell by 0.12% against a basket of reference currencies but remained close to a one-week high of around 103 points.

The euro gained 0.06% to $1.0925, while the pound sterling traded at $1.2746, up 0.20%.

RATE

The yield on the ten-year German Bund ended Friday down 4.8 basis points, at 2.223%, but posted a gain of around 6 points over the week as a whole, a sign of a return to calm on the markets.

In the United States, the ten-year Treasury yield fell by 6.5 basis points to 3.9321%, while money markets estimate a 54.5% probability that the Fed will reduce its rates by 50 basis points in September, according to the CME FedWatch barometer.

OIL

The decline in fears over demand for crude oil is benefiting oil, which is on track to record a weekly gain of more than 3%.

At the close of trading in Europe, Brent rose by 0.52% to $79.56 per barrel and light American crude (West Texas Intermediate, WTI) by 0.60% to $76.65 per barrel.

TO BE CONTINUED ON MONDAY:

(Written by Claude Chendjou, edited by Kate Entringer)

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