Despite elevated oil prices and rising bond yields, France’s equity benchmark CAC 40 experienced a slight uptick Tuesday morning, driven by robust buying in specific stocks, notably Legrand and STMicroelectronics. Oil prices have risen as a result of the stalemate in U.S.-Iran negotiations, with reports indicating that Iranian officials harbour pessimism regarding the likelihood of an agreement being reached prior to the U.S. midterm elections in November.
Brent crude front-month futures, having reached a peak of $107.87 a barrel earlier, subsequently fell to $105.50, reflecting only a modest increase from the previous close. France’s long-term Treasury yield remained elevated, having climbed to its highest level since mid 2008. With U.S.-Iran negotiations failing to yield significant advancements, and lacking substantial data from the regional front to justify major shifts, investors maintained a predominantly cautious stance.
The benchmark CAC 40 was up 10.57 points or 0.13% at 8,089.05 a few minutes before noon.
- Legrand experienced an increase of over 7% following the upward revision of its 2030 targets, attributing this to enhanced growth in data centers and the energy transition, as well as improved profitability.
- Schneider Electric experienced an increase of nearly 3%. Bureau Veritas experienced an increase of 2.3%, while STMicroelectronics saw a rise of just over 2%.
- Accor, Societe Generale, Air Liquide, Credit Agricole, Safran, Capgemini, and BNP Paribas recorded slight increases.
- Eiffage experienced a decline of 3.1%. Vinci and Eurofins Scientific experienced declines of 2.5% and 2.3%, respectively. Carrefour experienced a decline of 17%, while TotalEnergies saw a decrease of 1.4%.
- Orange, Danone, Engie, Saint-Gobain, Hermes International, Dassault Systemes, Renault, Pernod Ricard, EssilorLuxottica, and LVMH experienced declines ranging from 0.6% to 1.1%.
