(BFM Stock Exchange) – The Paris Stock Exchange Closes strongly decreased this Friday evening, weighed down by a report on American employment lower than expected, results of disappointing companies and by a risk aversion caused by uncertainty on customs surcharge.

The Paris Stock Exchange begins this August with half -marale at half mail, worried about signals suggesting a slowdown in the American economy.

The CAC 40 plunged 2.91% to 7,546.16 points, at the end of this Friday, August 1 to display its strongest withdrawal since April 9 (-3.34%). In weekly rhythm, the Parisian star index retrocedes 3.68%.

A deleterious climate has settled in the markets, amplified by the publication of the official employment report in the United States for the month of July. This document highlighted a deterioration in the American labor market last month.

The American economy has created fewer positions than what was anticipated, with 73,000 non-agricultural jobs created in July in the United States. Expectations were located at 104,000 job creations last month, according to consensus compiled by the Wall Street Journal.

A “mediocre” report

“It is impossible to deny that the employment report in July is poor, with an increase of 73,000 non -agricultural jobs against 104,000 according to consensus, but the most striking is the huge revision down 258,000 jobs for the last two months,” notes James Knightley, chief economist at ING.

Violent movements were thus observed on several assets. On the bond market, the yield of the US Treasury Bon at 10 years fell to 4.235% while it was evolving around 4.40% a little earlier in the day.

Especially the euro increases its earnings, or more exactly, the dollar unscrews. The Euro zone currency jumped 1.2% against the greenback at $ 1.1564 while it was slightly dropped by 0.3% before this indicator.

These fears of a distrust of the first world economy are also propagated in oil prices. Apresses at midday, the prices of black gold drop out, the October contract on the Brent de Mer du Nord plunges from 2.8% to 69.72 dollars per barrel, while that of September on the WTI listed in New York is cowardly 2.6% at 67.47 Dollars a barrel.

Appétit for risk has also been sealed by uncertainty on American customs duties. This Friday, August 1, the United States was to set up heavy customs from customs against the countries with which it had not reached an agreement.

President Donald Trump signed the decree establishing these new customs duties on Thursday. Their concrete application will come into force on August 7, time, for American customs, to organize.

“Trump also announced that customs duties on Canadian products would immediately increase from 25 % to 35 % (even if the products in accordance with the US-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement would remain exempt, which reduces the impact). Canada is therefore to a certain extent targeted,” writes Deutsche Bank.

In addition, China has announced an unexpected contraction of its manufacturing sector at 49.5 in July against 50.2 expected. As a reminder, the figure of 50 marks the border between a contraction and an expansion of the activity.

Stolen from disappointments on the CAC 40

The markets were already under pressure before this report on employment, disappointed by a new salvo of results which are, overall, bad.

At the peloton of the CAC 40 peloton, Teleperformance plunged 20.65% after having delivered a disappointing and indicated growth that he now aimed at the bottom of his income for income for 2025.

Saint-Gobain abandoned 9.3% after reporting a degradation of its volumes in the second quarter compared to the first.

AXA lost 7.85% while the company delivered “only” online results with expectations.

Engie made 2.45%, penalized by a slight failure on its current operating profit.

Only the defensive values have managed to extricate from this stock market slump, with Orange at the top of the CAC 40 (+3.60%), Sanofi (+1.9%) and Danone (+0.9%).