The places of the Old Continent closed down, Paris by 0.54%, Frankfurt by 1.20% and Milan by 0.95%. Only London is resisting (+0.08%). In Zurich, the SMI dropped 1.26%.
Unexciting corporate earnings results, as well as the imminence of quarterly publications from the big names in technology in the United States, weighed on world markets on Tuesday.
Wall Street sank into the red: the Dow Jones by 1.54%, the S&P500 by 1.88% and the Nasdaq by 3.10% around 3:55 p.m. GMT.
This trend has contaminated Europe: up sharply in the middle of the session, the places of the Old Continent finally fell, Paris by 0.54%, Frankfurt by 1.20%, Milan by 0.95%. Only London held (+0.08%). In Zurich, the SMI dropped 1.26%.
“This underscores the lack of confidence in the economic outlook, but also in the ability of central banks to achieve a + soft landing +” of economic activity “in their fight against inflation”, according to Michael Hewson, analyst at CMC Markets.
Above all, before the results of the big names in American technology (Microsoft, Amazon, Apple, Meta) in the coming days, investors are being extremely cautious.
One of the earliest tech publications has something to push that mood, with Netflix plunging more than 35% in the past week after reporting a drop in subscribers for the first time in a decade.
After a series of quarters of flamboyant results, “the good surprises are greeted modestly, but the bad surprises severely”, notes Guillaume Chaloin, director of equity management at Meeschaert Amilton AM.
In addition, the context remains weighed down by fears that the health situation in China could once again derail the country’s growth and global production chains. After confinement in Shanghai, Beijing is also under the threat of such a measure due to the increase in contamination.
Finally, on the indicator side, durable goods orders in the United States rebounded less than expected in March. Sales of new homes fell, with the average price rising again.
Unwelcome results
In the United States, the GE conglomerate (-11.68%) indicated that it was heading towards the bottom of the range of previously announced targets.
The airline JetBlue (-9.43%) and the entertainment giant Warner (-4.84%) also fell.
In London, HSBC bank announced a drop of more than a quarter over one year in its net profit in the first quarter of 2022 due to provisions for credit losses linked to the weight of inflation and the war in Ukraine. She lost 7.30%. In Germany, Commerzbank (-7.32%) also fell sharply.
Caution on tech
Before the publications during the week, Apple (-2.42%), Microsoft (-2.85%), Alphabet (-3.30%), Meta (Facebook, -3.62%) raised concerns.
The day after the announcement of an agreement on the takeover of Twitter by Elon Musk, the title of the blue bird moved away a little further (-2.96% to 50.20 dollars) from the price of proposed acquisition, or $54.20 per share.
Tesla (-9.61%) continued to resent his boss’s commitment to the Twitter file. Since the beginning of the saga, the title of the automaker has lost almost 20%.
In Frankfurt, meal deliverers Hello Fresh (-8.42%) and Delivery Hero (-7.52%) plunged.
Oil keeps rebounding
Oil prices were picking up as tensions over Russian supply offset fears about a destruction of demand for black gold with the threat of a lockdown in the Chinese capital.
Around 3:35 p.m. GMT, a barrel of Brent North Sea oil for June delivery was up 2.48% at 104.81 dollars.
The barrel of American West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for delivery the same month gained 2.67% to 101.20 dollars.
On the side of the euro and bitcoin
The euro fell 0.52% against the dollar at 1.0657 dollars, the lowest in more than two years, penalized by the conflict in Ukraine and the Fed’s monetary tightening while the greenback is supported by its status of safe haven.
Bitcoin also sank 3.22% to $38,890.