The control room of Euronext, the company that manages the Paris Stock Exchange (AFP/Eric PIERMONT)
On Tuesday, the Paris stock exchange chained a fifth consecutive upward session (+0.48%), making an easy slalom among a multitude of indicators, still led by the luxury sector, starting with LVMH which achieved a record market capitalization for Europe.
The CAC 40 star index rose 33.85 points to 7,077.16 points. The day before he had already taken 0.28%.
The Paris rating moved slightly below equilibrium for most of the session before accelerating sharply at 4pm after Bloomberg said, citing unnamed sources, that the European Central Bank could raise its less-key rates than feared at one of its next two monetary policy meetings.
The CAC 40 then briefly surpassed 7,100 points, before making some gains.
“The market started strong in 2023, without pauses, unlike the previous bull phases” of recent months, underlines Guillaume Chaloin, manager of Meeschaert AM.
According to him, this is due to a repositioning of institutional players since the beginning of the year towards the equity market, after a year in which they had turned to the bond market, attracted by rising yields.
Renewed confidence in the soundness of European economies is also benefiting industrials stocks, while tech stocks are also getting somewhat back into investors’ good graces after their 2022 crash.
In Germany, investor sentiment improved again in December, reflecting market hopes that inflation will soon come down in the euro zone’s largest economy, according to the ZEW barometer.
And while China posted its worst annual growth in nearly 40 years, according to official data, year-end economic indicators were better than analysts expected.
However, in January in the United States, manufacturing activity in the New York area recorded a more marked decline than expected, a further sign of the economic slowdown underway in the country, or even of a risk of recession in the coming months.
LVMH is worth more than 400 billion euros
The world’s number 1 luxury brand LVMH has crossed the €400 billion mark in market capitalization for the first time, an unprecedented level for a European company.
The share closed up 0.59% at 797.40 euros, with a peak during the session at 803.20 euros. At closing, its valuation was €401 billion.
Different destinies for the other luxury stocks, sharply down for Kering (-0.98% to 555.10 euros) and sharply up for Hermès (+1.78% to 1,658 euros).
Renault agrees with Nissan
Nissan (+2.69% in Tokyo) and Renault (+1.89% to 38.02 euros) agreed overnight from Monday to Tuesday to restructure their alliance after months of talks, formal announcements now expected in late January – early February. The manufacturer is the company that has made the most progress on the Paris Stock Exchange in 2023, with a +21.57%.
Engine degraded
Engie signed the major decline of the CAC 40 (-5.47% to 12.47 euros), penalized by a note from Bank of America which warns that “the worst is yet to come” for the company and considers it unlikely to raise earnings forecast for 2023.
In his wake Veolia lost 1.42% to 27.08 euros.
Euronext CAC40