The Paris stock market is gradually erasing yesterday's losses (-0.84%), and the CAC40 (+0.7% to 7,680) has a core of 35 minutes to make up a further 0.15% and record an all-time best close (at 7.690).
The CAC40 is driven upwards by Capgemini (+6.8%), Thales (+3.8%) and Kering (+1.5%).
The Euro-Stoxx50 is up +0.5% to 4,712 as Wall Street surges on a wave of buybacks of stocks abandoned the previous day.
The Dow Jones gained 0.2%, the S&P500 +0.5% (after a 1.4% decline on Tuesday), and the Nasdaq recovered +0.6% (after -1.7% on Tuesday).
Note that Nvidia (+2.5% at $470) took the 3rd largest market capitalization in the US from Alphabet with $1.830 bn and is closing in on a +50% rise since January 1: this represents +$650 bn in 'capi' in 6 weeks... equivalent to 10 times its anticipated sales in 2024 (20 times those of 2023).
The previous day, a less favorable than expected CPI was used as a pretext for some profit-taking on semiconductors (+20% in a straight line since January 4)... and was accompanied by a sudden tension in rates (+15Pts on the '2-year' at 4.62%, compared with 4% at the end of December 2023).
After breaking through 4.315% on Tuesday evening, US 10-year T-Bonds eased very slightly (-2.5pts), to around 4.29%, while German Bunds of the same maturity also eased -2.5pts to 2.35%. Our OATs, on the other hand, eased -5pts to 2.84%, while Italian BTPs eased -9.5pts to 3.8700% (the improvement accelerated in the early afternoon).

The probability, according to market participants, of a first rate cut as early as next month fell sharply, to 8.5% from 76.9% a month earlier, according to CME's Fedwatch survey.

For Christopher Dembik, Investment Strategy Advisor at Pictet Asset Management, this publication was a good excuse for investors to catch their breath and take a few profits after a very solid start to the year so far.

We doubt, however, that this will call into question the good momentum in equities that has been underway since the start of the year", the analyst moderates.

"We must refrain from over-interpreting yesterday's statistics", he stresses. The disinflation process is still well underway on the other side of the Atlantic", the professional reminds us.

On the 'macro' front, Eurostat, the European Union's statistical office, reports that CVS industrial production rose by 2.6% in the eurozone and the EU from November to December 2023.

Industrial production rose by 20.5% for capital goods and fell by 1.2% for intermediate goods in the eurozone.
As a reminder, in November 2023, industrial production rose by 0.4% in the eurozone and by 0.5% in the EU.

The new estimate of eurozone GDP for the fourth quarter is identical to the initial figure, with a stagnation of around 0.00%.
On the FOREX, the Euro is recovering towards 1.0725 (+0.15%), Gold is retreating towards $1,985 and Brent crude oil is up +0.5% towards $83, i.e. $1 away from strong resistance at $84, while WTI (+1%) is closing in on $79 in New York.

In French company news, M6 reports that Nicolas de Tavernost has decided to step down as Chairman of the Management Board before August 22, 2025, when he will reach the age limit, and that David Larramendy will be appointed as his successor at the AGM on April 23, 2024.

For the year 2023, Capgemini reports increases of 7% in net income, Group share, to 1.66 billion euros, and 8% in normalized earnings per share, to 12.44 euros, for an operating margin of 13.3%, up 30 basis points.

Air Liquide is aiming for a new record in 2023 by signing 62 new small gas production units, installed directly on its customers' sites, in the industrial merchant and electronics sectors.

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