by Claude Chendjou
PARIS (Reuters) – The main European stock markets, apart from Frankfurt, ended lower on Thursday, while Wall Street was also in the red at mid-session, the indices being close to their record levels, which gives rise to profit-taking.
In Paris, the CAC 40 ended with a loss of 0.23% to 8,041.36 points. The British Footsie fell by 0.41% the day after its record at 9,577.08 points. The German Dax, supported by industrial stocks, stood out, gaining 0.22% after reaching an unprecedented peak during the session at 24,771.34 points.
The EuroStoxx 50 index lost 0.43% and the FTSEurofirst 300 0.47%. The Stoxx 600 fell 0.43% after a peak at 574.32 points on Wednesday, penalized by cyclical consumption (-2.26%), while the defensive compartment of “utilities” (+0.61%) offered a little support.
At the close in Europe, the Dow Jones fell by 0.32%, the Standard & Poor’s 500 by 0.24% and the Nasdaq by 0.18% after the closing records set the day before by these two indices, against a backdrop of enthusiasm for artificial intelligence (AI).
The absence of clues from the President of the American Federal Reserve (Fed), Jerome Powell, during a banking conference, on the trajectory of key rates, was the pretext for profit-taking while stocks are at high levels and the “shutdown” continues in the United States.
At the same time, the price of gold remains above $4,000 per ounce, while the volatility index on Wall Street rose by more than 4% to nearly 17 points.
On the political level, in France, we are still waiting for a new Prime Minister after the resignation of Sébastien Lecornu, while in the United States the “shutdown” continues and in the Middle East, Israel and Hamas approved on Thursday the first phase of American President Donald Trump’s plan to end the war in the Gaza Strip.
VALUES IN EUROPE
Danone climbed 4.74% as JPMorgan analysts upgraded their forecasts for the group’s third quarter results.
Sopra Steria, which announced the departure of its general director, fell 3.96%, while Alten gained 1.71% after announcing a reorganization of its governance.
Worldline dropped 3.90%, with Morgan Stanley moving to “underweight” on the stock.
Novo Nordisk lost 1.25% after announcing the acquisition of Akero Therapeutics for more than $4.7 billion.
HSBC fell 5.38% as the bank offered to delist its subsidiary Hang Seng Bank for around $13.6 billion.
Ferrari plunged 15.41% after the presentation of its new strategic plan which plans to maintain gasoline and hybrid models at the heart of its range in the years to come.
Porsche fell 2.49%, its global sales having fallen over nine months, weighed down by China.
INDICATOR OF THE DAY
German exports fell 0.5% in August compared to the previous month, an unexpected decline, according to data from the Federal Statistical Office published on Thursday.
CHANGES
The dollar strengthened further, by 0.59% against a basket of reference currencies, benefiting from the weakening of the euro in the context of the political crisis in France and the difficulties of the yen with the probable arrival in power in Japan of Sanae Takaichi, whose policy could be expansionist.
The euro fell 0.62%, to 1.1554 dollars, while the “minutes” of the European Central Bank (ECB) show that its officials are in no hurry to reduce key rates again, even if they are very aware of the level of uncertainty and the exceptionally high risks.
The pound sterling is trading at 1.3309 dollars (-0.72%).
RATE
The yield on French ten-year bonds stood at 3.52% on Thursday, up 1.5 basis points (bp), while the gap with the German Bund stood at 82.15 basis points, compared to nearly 90 basis points on Monday. The ten-year Bund yield ended at 2.70%, up 2.8 bps. The yield on ten-year US Treasury bonds is practically unchanged, at 4.13%, pending interventions in the evening from several members of the Fed.
OIL
The ceasefire agreement in Gaza caused oil prices to fall: Brent fell by 0.97% to $65.6 per barrel and American light crude (West Texas Intermediate, WTI) fell by 0.98% to $61.94.
TO BE CONTINUED FRIDAY:
(Writing by Claude Chendjou, edited by Kate Entringer)
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