PARIS (Reuters) – European stock markets ended in mixed order but with little variation on Friday, investors welcoming company results with less pleasant surprise than usual.
In Paris, the CAC 40 lost 0.09% to 6.47 points. The British Footsie improved by 0.23%, while the German Dax gained 0.02%. The EuroStoxx 50 index gained 0.09%, while the FTSEurofirst 300 fell 0.02% and the Stoxx 600 fell 0.04%.
The earnings season continues, with investors having to digest the uncertainties linked to the US election and the economic data released this week in addition to the figures from many companies.
Among STOXX 600 companies that reported third-quarter results, 35.3% beat estimates, compared to the typical rate of 54%, LSEG data showed earlier this week.
Despite a greater improvement than expected in German business morale, the market is wondering about the extent of monetary easing by the European Central Bank (ECB) while the PMIs published this week reflect sluggish activity in the euro zone. .
At the same time, investors are assessing the potential consequences of the US election result.
“During the week of weak US data, markets began to price in greater short-term uncertainty,” Citigroup analysts said in a note.
VALUES
The basic resources sector recorded the largest increase at 2.08% while the insurance sector recorded one of the largest declines falling by 0.81%.
Sanofi closed up 2.31%, signing the best performance of the CAC 40 after reporting on Friday strong growth in its operating profit in the third quarter.
Alten dropped 7.46%, the engineering group, very exposed to the European automotive sector, having lowered its annual targets on Thursday in the face of the slowdown in activity.
The spirits group Rémy Cointreau closed up 0.59% after a turbulent session linked to the revision of its objectives for the 2024-2025 financial year following an organic drop of 16.1% in its figures. business in the second quarter.
The banking group NatWest gained 0.58% after reporting a 25% increase in its third quarter profit.
A WALL STREET
The indices are benefiting from the easing of bond yields this weekend as the 10-year yield closed at its highest since July on Wednesday.
At closing time in Europe, trading on the New York Stock Exchange indicated a stable Dow Jones while the Standard & Poor’s 500 showed an increase of 0.6% and the Nasdaq Composite 1.27%.
CHANGES
Foreign exchange markets are relatively stable on Friday awaiting a catalyst.
The yield on the German ten-year rose 0.2 bps to 2.292%, that of the two-year rate gained 0.2 bps to 2.148%.
At the close in Europe, the yield on the ten-year Treasury rose 0.4 bps to 4.206%, while the yield on the two-year security dropped 0.6 bps to 4.0595%.
RATE
Yields are increasing in Germany after the publication of better than expected data on Thursday.
OIL
The barrel is rising against a backdrop of tensions in the Middle East.
Brent rose by 1.49% to $75.49 per barrel, American light crude (West Texas Intermediate, WTI) rose by 1.54% to $71.27.
TO BE FOLLOWED (Monday): [L8N3M114Z]
(Written by Bertrand De Meyer, edited by Kate Entringer)
Copyright © 2024 Thomson Reuters
I have over 8 years of experience working in the news industry. I have worked as a reporter, editor, and now managing editor at 247 News Agency. I am responsible for the day-to-day operations of the news website and overseeing all of the content that is published. I also write a column for the website, covering mostly market news.
