CAC40: in red, penalized by Teleperformance's fall
(CercleFinance.com) - The Paris stock market is down by almost 0.
3% this morning, to 8080 points, penalized by Teleperformance's fall (-9%) the day after its results.
Fears about global growth fueled by trade issues are likely to dominate trading again this Friday, following last night's heavy fall in the US markets (-2.8% for the Nasdaq, -1.6% for the S&P) despite Nvidia's rather solid results.
Concerns about the impact of trade tensions returned, as Donald Trump confirmed that Chinese products would be subject to 10% additional tariffs from March 4.
Through its Minister of Commerce, Beijing expressed its firm opposition to the US President's decision and announced its intention to adopt countermeasures to protect the country's "legitimate rights and interests".
"For weeks, the stock market had been neglecting the impact of the trade war", points out Christopher Dembik, Investment Strategy Advisor at Pictet Asset Management.
"Sooner or later, the subject had to come back to the fore", says the analyst.
Asian stock markets were also hit hard on Friday, with declines ranging from 2.9% in Tokyo to over 3.2% in Hong Kong by the end of the session.
Investors are also keeping a wait-and-see attitude ahead of the release of inflation data in the USA and Europe, which will be crucial for the path of monetary policy on both sides of the Atlantic.
In Europe, market participants will be paying close attention to the publication, at 2:00 p.m., of the first estimate of inflation in Germany for the month of February, less than a week ahead of the European Central Bank's (ECB) monetary policy meeting.
On the other side of the Atlantic, PCE inflation, the indicator used by the Federal Reserve to monitor price dynamics, is expected to slow slightly.
The consensus is for a deceleration in price rises to 2.5% year-on-year in January, from 2.6% in December, while core inflation is expected to ease from 2.8% to 2.6%.
In the meantime, investors this morning took note of several statistics concerning France.
According to Insee's provisional end-of-month estimate, consumer prices in France rose by 0.8% year-on-year in February, after +1.7% in January. For the first time since February 2021, the year-on-year change would thus be below 1%.
In addition, French household consumption expenditure on goods fell by 0.5% in volume over one month in January, following an increase of 0.7% in December 2024, according to Insee's seasonally and working-day adjusted (CVS-CJO) data.
On the bond markets, yields remained relaxed, with German 10-year sovereign bonds trading at 2.38% and their French counterparts at 3.11%.
The yield spread between the Bund and the French OAT stabilized at around 72/73 basis points.
In the United States, the ten-year Treasuries rate is holding steady in the 4.25% region, still well below that of three-month paper (4.31%), a reversal potentially heralding a recession in the making.
As a result of risk aversion, Forex traders are taking refuge in the dollar, pushing the euro down to $1.04, whereas the single currency was still trading above the $1.05 threshold on Wednesday.
On the oil markets, Brent crude and US light crude prices are back on a downward trend, penalized by doubts about global growth and the effects of escalating trade tensions.
Brent crude is down 0.5% at $73.5 a barrel.
In French company news, Teleperformance last night reported adjusted net income (Group share) of €807 million (vs. €732 million a year earlier), giving adjusted diluted earnings per share of €13.44 (vs. €12.39 in 2023).
Saint-Gobain also reported last night operating income of E4.37 billion (+3.5%) and consolidated net income, group share of E2.84 billion (+6.6%), giving EPS of 5.69 euros (+8.2%).
Casino reports net income from continuing operations of 2.17 billion euros for 2024, compared with a loss of 2.56 billion the previous year, but adjusted EBITDA down 24.7% to 576 million, reflecting a margin of 6.8% (-174 basis points).
Finally, Oddo BHF reiterates its 'outperform' recommendation on AXA shares, with a price target slightly raised from €40 to €41, in the wake of the insurance company's publication of better-than-expected results for 2024.
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