Very disappointing end to the session on the Paris Stock Exchange. the Cac 40which gained more than 1% during most of the session, ended on a symbolic increase of 0.20%, 6,285.24 points, not without having passed, for a few moments, into negative territory.
The fault, once again, on Wall Street, where the initial rebound did not hold. At the time of closing in Europe, the Dow Jones loses 0.87%, the S&P 500 gives up 0.8% and the Nasdaq Composite 0.95%. The first index aligns an eighth week of increases in a row, a seventh for the other two. In Paris, the Cac 40 lost 1.22% in five sessions, after rising 1.67% the previous week.
” Hard time “
« The markets have had a very difficult time over the past seven weeks, explains Art Hogan, at National Securities, it has a lot to do with concerns about inflation and its implications for corporate margins and how the Fed will implement on the monetary level to bring prices under control. Although this is not new, today it is the number one headwind. »
If the day had started well, it was thanks to favorable news from Chine, where the authorities are taking seriously the concerns linked to a strong potential slowdown in growth due to the Covid epidemic. The People’s Bank of China (BPC) thus announced a marked drop in one of its main key ratesin order to revive its economy, undermined by the confinement of the major cities of Shanghai and of Shenzhen.
The five-year prime loan rate, which serves as a benchmark for the Chinese mortgage market, was lowered by 15 basis points to 4.45%. This is the biggest decrease since the overhaul of the BPoC’s interest rate system in 2019. Economists had expected a drop of just five to ten basis points. ” While that certainly won’t be enough to counter all of the headwinds dampening second quarter growth, it’s a step in the right direction and markets are reacting in anticipation of perhaps further easing to come. commented Carlos Casanova, UBP’s senior Asia economist in Hong Kong to Archyde.com.
Richemont dives in Zurich
Luxury stocks, which account for more than 20% of the capitalization of the flagship index of the Paris Stock Exchange, have particularly weighed on the trend, weighed down by the poor annual results of the Swiss Richemont and its caution on the recovery in Chinadown sharply by 13% on the Zurich Stock Exchange. Hermes lost 1.94%, LVMH 2,09%, Dry 0,83% et L’Oreal 0.28%. On the other side of the list, the manager of shopping centers Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield (+3.2%) recovered a little from its 11.5% drop the day before.
Hors Cac 40, Vallourec (+6.75%) benefited from a note favorable d’Oddo BHFwhich raised its price target on the title of the manufacturer of seamless tubes to 16.50 euros.
Air France-KLM (+1.1%) was once again at the heart of the news. Two days after the announcement of a long-term strategic partnership with the Marseille shipowner CMA CGM, the air carrier has indicated that it has entered into exclusive discussions with Apollo Global Management for the injection of 500 million euros of capital into an operational subsidiary of Air France, owner of a fleet of spare engines dedicated to its activity of engineering and maintenance. ” The proceeds of the transaction would allow Air France-KLM and Air France to partially repay the perpetual obligations of the French State, in accordance with the Temporary Framework for State Aid Measures. »