CAC40: recovery gathers pace as US indices rebound

(CercleFinance.com) - The Paris stock market (+0.
8%) recorded a 3rd session (+0.5% on Monday and +0.5% on Tuesday) around 8,180 points, driven by Schneider Electric (+3%), Hermès and Legrand (+2%) and Total energies (+1.5%).

The Paris index returns to within 1% of its all-time highs, while the DAX 40 corrects by -0.4% (in the wake of Rheinmetal with -5%, after a record high at the opening).
The Euro-Stoxx50 grabs only 0.3%, but returns to 5,500: European stock markets digest the Bundestag's decision to lift the German debt lock, as part of the future Merz government's massive investment plan.

In our opinion, this is a historic change in the fiscal regime, probably the most important since German reunification", hailed Robin Winkler, chief German economist at Deutsche Bank Research, after the parliamentary vote.

However, as with reunification, fiscal expansion is no guarantee of success: the next government will have to implement structural reforms to transform this fiscal package into sustainable growth", he added.

On Wall Street, the rebound gathered pace, with the S&P500 and Dow Jones up 0.8%, and the Nasdaq up 1.2%.
A cautious wait for the FED's statement this evening at 7pm.
"The macro-financial context has become somewhat gloomier since the last FOMC meeting, with the downgrading of several confidence surveys and the decline in equity markets", points out Bastien Drut, Head of Strategy and Economic Research at CPRAM.

The Fed is likely to leave its key rates unchanged for the second time in a row, in large part because it is difficult for it to get a clear idea of the consequences of Donald Trump's trade policy", he predicts.

On the figures front, the US Energy Information Agency (EIA) reports that US crude oil inventories stood at 437 million barrels in the week to March 10, up 1.7 million barrels on the previous week.

The agency also reported that distillate inventories - including heating oil - fell by 2.8 million barrels, while gasoline inventories were down 0.5 million barrels on the previous week.
Finally, the EIA reported that refineries operated at 86.9% of their operational capacity during the same week, with an average production of 9.6 million barrels/day (close to record levels).

International news is also marked by the much-staged exchanges between Washington and the Kremlin on the subject of a potential ceasefire in Ukraine. These talks were of dubious effectiveness, as they failed to dissuade Moscow from sending more than a hundred drones and six missiles over the Ukrainian skies before crashing into the country.

On the European statistics front, according to Eurostat, the annual inflation rate in the Eurozone stood at 2.3% in February 2025, compared with 2.5% in January (versus 2.6% 1 year ago).
The annual inflation rate in the European Union stood at 2.7% in February 2025, compared with 2.8% in January. Last year at the same time, it was 2.8%.
Bunds and OATs eased -2.5pts to 2.7910% and 3.4700% respectively, while US T-Bonds gained +2pts to 4.3010%.
Note: the ounce of gold set a new all-time record at $3,045/Oz.

In Paris, Assystem reports net income of 7.5 million euros for 2024, compared with 102.8 million the previous year, but operating income up 7.8% to 40.3 million, giving a margin of 6.6% compared with 6.5% in 2023.

Ipsen reports the success of its inaugural rated bond issue of 500 million euros, with a coupon of 3.875% and maturing in March 2032, with 'a significant oversubscription by a solid and diversified institutional investor base'.

Alstom announces that it will supply the Eurométropole de Strasbourg and the Compagnie des Transports Strasbourgeois (CTS) with 27 new-generation Citadis trainsets, which will reinforce the CTS network's rolling stock fleet from 2026. In addition, Le Havre Seine Métropole has chosen Alstom's new-generation streetcars for the extension of its transport network; the four-year framework agreement includes a minimum order of eight streetcars, with the first deliveries scheduled for 2027.

Finally, Thales announces that it will equip the Royal Netherlands Navy's future Orka-class submarines with a complete high-performance sonar suite, replacing its Walrus-class submarines currently in service.



Copyright (c) 2025 CercleFinance.com. All rights reserved.