The control room of Euronext, the company that manages the Paris stock exchange, at La Défense, November 21, 2019 (AFP / ERIC PIERMONT)
The Paris Stock Exchange fell back into risk aversion on Thursday once morest a backdrop of stronger-than-expected inflation in the United States and fears for economic growth that are worrying investors.
Around 11:05 a.m., the CAC 40 index lost 2.38% to 6,120.75 points, leaving behind two consecutive rebound sessions.
The US consumer price index (CPI) rose 8.3% year on year in April, beating economists’ forecasts, and fears of more aggressive monetary tightening from the US Federal Reserve in the face of persistently high inflation had finally prevailed on the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday.
Investors are realizing that “even if US inflation is falling now, it will do so at a snail’s pace,” said Jeffrey Halley, analyst for Oanda.
In an environment made anxiety-provoking by the continuation of the war in Ukraine, the confinements put in place in China, persistent inflation and fears of an acceleration of monetary tightening, market players fear a sharp economic slowdown, or even a recession for the most pessimistic among them.
During this session, investors will this time closely watch the first estimate of producer prices in the United States in April.
This major indicator “will provide an idea of the proportion of inflation that will be passed on to the American consumer in the short term”, underlines Christopher Dembik, director of macroeconomic research at Saxo Bank.
For its part, the European Central Bank is preparing people’s minds for a first rate hike in July.
Ambitious STMicroelectronics and Ubisoft
The Franco-Italian manufacturer of electronic components (+ 3.23% to 35.49 euros) is aiming for an annual turnover of 20 billion dollars “and beyond” for the period 2025-2027, a very marked increase by compared to its current sales.
The video game giant Ubisoft, which saw its turnover for the staggered 2021-2022 financial year drop by 4.4% over one year, to 2.125 billion euros, has set itself the objective “to reconnect with significant growth” in its revenues for the 2022-2023 financial year.
Bouygues suffers from a comparison
Bouygues shares lost 1.54% to 30.75 euros while the French construction giant published a sharp decline in net income in the first quarter of 2022, due in particular to the resale of Alstom shares, despite a figure of business up 6% to 8.2 billion euros. A first quarter “a little above expectations but a little less dynamic than the peers however”, underlines a note from Oddo BHF.
