CAC40: continues its ascent and approaches 8200 pts

(CercleFinance.com) - The Paris Bourse ended the session with a 0.
7% gain, at 8,171 points, driven by Schneider Electric (+2.9%), Safran (+2.1%) and Hermès (+1.7%).

The Paris index thus posted its fourth consecutive session of gains, with a 2.9% gain over the period.

The Paris index returned to within 1% of its all-time highs, while the DAX 40 corrected by -0.4% (in the wake of Rheinmetall with -5%, after a record high at the opening).

The Euro Stoxx 50 clawed back almost 0.5%, climbing back above 5,500 points as European stock markets digested the Bundestag's decision to break 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 budgetary regime, without doubt the most important since German reunification", emphasized 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 adds.

On Wall Street, the rebound is gaining momentum, with the S&P 500 up 0.8%, the Dow Jones +0.7% and the Nasdaq +1.1%, while the Fed's statement is expected at 7pm.

The macro-financial context has darkened somewhat 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 CPR AM.

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

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, since they did not dissuade Moscow from sending more than a hundred drones and six missiles over the Ukrainian skies before crashing into the country.

In terms of figures, the US Energy Information Agency (EIA) reported that US crude oil inventories stood at 437 million barrels for the week ending March 10, up 1.7 million barrels on the previous week.

The EIA reports that refineries operated at 86.9% of their operational capacity during the same week, with production averaging 9.6 million barrels/day (close to record levels).

On the European statistics front, according to Eurostat, the annual inflation rate for the Eurozone stood at 2.3% in February 2025, compared with 2.5% in January (2.6% a year ago).
The annual inflation rate for the European Union stood at 2.7% in February 2025, compared with 2.8% in January. Last year at the same time, it stood at 2.8%.

On the bond front, Bunds, Italian BTPs and OATs eased -2 pts to 2.7950%, 3.848% and 3.4750% respectively. Symmetrically, US T-Bonds posted +2.5 pts at 4.3060%.
Note: the ounce of gold set a new all-time record at $3,045/oz, holding above $3,030 (+1.1%).

In other Paris stock news, 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 strong 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.

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