The Paris Stock Exchange is moving at a level close to equilibrium on Friday, with investors waiting before the publication of one of the first major indicators of the year, the American employment report.
Around 10:00 a.m., the CAC 40 index gained 9.84 points, or some 0.13%, to 7,500.12 points. On Thursday, it finished up 0.51% at 7,490.28 points.
the US employment report for December, which will be published in the afternoon, “will give a crucial indication to the Fed”, the American Federal Reserve, “on the robustness of the economy and on the persistence or not of pressures on wages”, comment Sebastian Paris Horvitz and Xavier Chapard, experts from LBP AM.
This report is particularly awaited because it should “offer a little more visibility on the state of the labor market, after the disruptions we have seen over the last two months due to bad weather and wage conflicts during the fall “, they continue.
“As we enter the uncharted waters of 2025, every leading economic indicator becomes a litmus test for the reassessment” of the Fed’s rate trajectory, recalls Stephyen Innes, analyst at SPI AM.
“A series of stronger than expected data (on American employment) could very quickly shift” market expectations towards maintaining the Fed’s current rates until June, notes Ipek Ozkardeskaya, analyst at Swissquote Bank.
Conversely, data “weaker than expected could reinforce the hope of a decline in May”, according to her.
Especially since the reports “from the December (Fed) meeting suggest that the Federal Reserve is less convinced that rate cuts are necessary in the short term”, recalls Kathleen Brooks, director of research at XTB.
Ubisoft in turmoil
French video game giant Ubisoft fell in early trading on the Paris Stock Exchange on Friday, after the group, engulfed in a strategic crisis, announced disappointing Christmas sales and a new postponement of its flagship game Assassin’s Creed Shadows.
Thursday, after the stock market closed, the group announced that it had achieved “lower sales than expected during the end-of-year holidays” of its game in the Star Wars universe.
Around 10:00 a.m., the Ubisoft share price fell 6.81% to 11.36 euros, shortly after losing more than 10%.
Over twelve rolling months, the group’s value on the stock market has fallen by almost 50%.
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The Paris Stock Exchange ended slightly lower on Wednesday, after the publication of an article in the American press according to which Donald Trump would consider using specific legislative levers to quickly increase customs duties.
The Parisian CAC 40 suffered the biggest drop of the main European stock indices affected by the news.
The flagship index fell by 0.49% or 36.93 points, to 7,452.42 points.
The day before, it had increased by 0.59% to 7,489.35 points.
According to the American media CNN, which cites four sources close to the matter, the American president-elect is considering declaring a state of national economic emergency. This would allow it to obtain a legal framework that authorizes the execution of “a panoply of customs duties on allies and adversaries” of the United States.
This “equivalent of 49.3” would allow Donald Trump “to impose his customs tariffs as he sees fit, in an aggressive and unilateral manner”, explains Frédéric Rozier, portfolio manager at Mirabaud, interviewed by AFP.
During his presidential campaign, Donald Trump considered imposing 10 to 20% customs duties on all products entering the United States, and even up to 60% or even 100% on those coming from China.
The French market took these American threats “head on” on Wednesday, not because it would be a “specific attack against France”, but because the values which export to the United States weigh particularly heavily in the composition of the CAC 40, observes Mr. Rozier.
Thus, the “luxury sector, still a little in turmoil” according to him, has poorly digested the threat.
LVMH closed down 1.37%, Kering 2.22% and Dior 0.99%.
Furthermore, on the bond market, the “movement in rates risks becoming more anxiety-provoking”, notes Frédéric Rozier.
In the wake of the American rise, the yield on French government bonds with a 10-year maturity reached 3.36% around 6:30 p.m. compared to 3.30% at the previous close.
Vallourec, first dividend in 10 years
The specialist in seamless steel tubes confirmed on Wednesday its intention to pay its “first dividend in a decade” in 2025 and announced that it had reached its objective of zero net debt “one year in advance”.
Its title gained 7.17% to 18.24 euros.
Pluxee flies away
Pluxee, an entity that has become independent of Sodexo including its meal vouchers, jumped 15.80% to 21.77 euros after announcing first quarter results that exceeded market expectations.
Defense boosted
Defense stocks rose after Donald Trump renewed his accusations against NATO on Tuesday, repeating that its members do not pay enough in exchange for protection from the United States.
For him, Member States must increase their defense budget to 5% of their GDP, compared to the 2% currently required.
Thales took 4.23% and Dassault Aviation, which sold 21 Rafale in 2024 compared to only 13 in 2023, gained 4.94%.
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