CAC 40 Up Almost 1% as Auto and Luxury Stocks Climb

CAC Futures Updates

French stocks experienced notable gains on Wednesday, moving firmly into positive territory, even as apprehensions regarding Middle East tensions and the anticipated interest rate hike by the European Central Bank in June persisted. Weak oil prices contributed to an improvement in sentiment. Brent crude futures declined to below $94 a barrel following reports indicating that several LNG tankers have navigated through the Strait of Hormuz in recent days, alleviating supply concerns amidst the ongoing conflict in West Asia. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio indicated that a potential agreement to resolve the Middle East conflict might ‘take a few days,’ as there remain outstanding concerns regarding Tehran’s frozen assets and the unrestricted passage through Hormuz.

Iran has denounced the recent self-defence strikes executed by U.S. forces, asserting that it will not let any act of aggression go unanswered. The benchmark CAC 40 increased by 73.85 points, reflecting a rise of 0.9%, reaching 8,246.96 shortly after noon. Auto stocks experienced an uptick following the release of data indicating that European car sales increased for the third consecutive month in April, bolstered by robust demand for electric and hybrid vehicles.

  • Renault experienced a rally of 4.7%, while Stellantis saw an increase of 4.4%.
  • LVMH experienced an increase of nearly 4%, whereas Hermes International and Kering both saw gains of approximately 4.5%. L’Oreal advanced by 3.2%.
  • Michelin, Saint-Gobain, Eiffage, Airbus, and Pernod Ricard experienced increases in their stock values ranging from 2% to 3%.
  • EssilorLuxottica, Air Liquide, Safran, Thales, STMicroElectronics, Eurofins Scientific, and Danone demonstrated robust performance.
  • Capgemini experienced a decline of approximately 3.3%.
  • TotalEnergies experienced a decline of 3.1%, while Engie saw a decrease of 2%.
  • Euronext and Orange experienced declines of 1.4% and 1%, respectively.
  • Legrand and Carrefour reported slight declines in their financial performance.

In economic news, data indicated that the consumer confidence indicator in France declined to 82 in May from 84 in April, falling short of expectations of 83, and reaching its lowest level since March 2023.