(AOF) – European markets are expected to be close to balance. This week will be shortened, the Paris Stock Exchange will be closed on December 25 and 26 and will close in the early afternoon of December 24. Over the next few days, volumes will be the lowest of the year due to the absence of many speakers. On the interest rate market, the German 10-year yield gained 3 basis points to 2.317%. On the securities side, Axa signed an agreement with BNP Paribas Cardif relating to the sale of Axa IM. VusionGroup, for its part, announced the extension of the deployment of its solutions to all Walmart stores.
Values to follow today
Axa/BNP Paribas
Axa and BNP Paribas Cardif announced the signing of the agreement to acquire Axa Investment Managers (Axa IM) after entering into exclusive negotiations on August 1. This signature follows the completion of the information-consultation procedure of the relevant staff representative bodies of the 2 groups on the strategic issues of the project. “This signing marks an important step in the acquisition process of Axa IM and the long-term partnership with Axa,” declared Renaud Dumora, President of BNP Paribas Cardif, Deputy CEO of BNP Paribas.
Ipsos
Ipsos has received approval from the German competition authorities for the acquisition of infas, following the friendly public tender offer process launched in August 2024. The operation should be finalized in early January 2025. Once the transaction completed, Ipsos will now operate in Germany under the name Ipsos infas. “The combined teams – representing around 800 employees and six locations in Germany – will offer an even wider range of innovative research services,” emphasizes the market research specialist.
Unibail RW
URW (Unibail Rodamco Westfield) announced the sale of 80% of its stake in the Trinity office tower in La Défense to the Norwegian sovereign wealth fund, Norges Bank Investment Management. The transaction creates a new joint venture under which URW will continue to provide asset and property management services. The implied offer price for the asset is approximately 0.45 billion euros (at 100%), leading to a reduction in net debt of approximately 0.35 billion. The transaction is expected to be finalized during the first quarter of 2025.
Our Sea
Mare Nostrum has entered into discussions with the Domino RH group, a major player in human resources management, with a view to a possible capital merger. This merger would thus support and accompany the continuation plan – if it is approved by the Commercial Court – and would allow Mare Nostrum to rely on a solid partner, well established in France and abroad, to continue its activities. The territorial coverage of Domino RH is ensured by a network of 205 agencies formed by organic and external growth.
Macroeconomic figures
GDP remained stable in the third quarter in the United Kingdom after initially being forecast to rise by 0.1%, the ONS said.
The Conference Board's consumer confidence index for December in the United States will be known at 4 p.m.
This morning, the euro gained 0.01% to 1.0435 dollars.
Friday in Paris
European stock markets experienced another difficult session as dark clouds gathered. However, they significantly reduced their losses thanks to the upward turn in American indices. Nearly 2 days after the Fed adopted a tougher tone on inflation, investors were reassured by the PCE price index. In Europe, the session was marked by the historic fall of Novo Nordisk due to the disappointing results of its experimental anti-obesity drug, CagriSema. The CAC 40 index lost 0.27% to 7274.48 points.
Friday on Wall Street
American indices rose after the publication of inflation figures in November. A measure of inflation closely monitored by the Fed, the PCE index came out lower than expected on an annual basis: +2.4% against a consensus of 2.5%. In the wake of today's statistics, long rates fell. On the value side, FedEx crumbled despite the announcement Thursday evening of the split of its freight activity and the lowering of its annual outlook. The Dow Jones index gained 1.18% to 42,840.26 points and the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.03% to 19,572.60 points.
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