The Paris Stock Exchange closed positively with a 0.48% increase, driven mainly by luxury stocks like LVMH and Hermès. This marks six days of continuous growth. Meanwhile, US markets also showed gains after reopening, despite mixed economic indicators. The Philly-FED manufacturing activity index declined, and economic sentiment in Germany worsened. In corporate news, Thales Alenia Space is developing a Spanish quantum key distribution system, and Lacroix is selling its City-Mobility segment to Swarco.
Paris Stock Exchange Sees Positive Momentum with Luxury Stocks Leading
The Paris Stock Exchange concluded the trading session near its peak for the day, achieving a notable increase of 0.48%, closing at 7770 points. This rise was significantly bolstered by the luxury sector, with LVMH showing an impressive gain of 2.6% and Hermès following closely with a 2.5% increase.
This marks the sixth consecutive day of growth for the Paris index, which has seen an overall gain of nearly 4.5% during this period.
Market Activity and Economic Indicators
Today’s session was more dynamic compared to the previous day, particularly with the reopening of the New York markets after a three-day weekend for Martin Luther King Day. US indices also showed positive momentum, with the Dow Jones up by 0.9% and the S&P 500 rising by 0.5%. In contrast, the Nasdaq experienced a modest increase of 0.1%, as investors await Netflix’s earnings release later tonight.
In his inaugural address, Donald Trump reiterated his commitment to prioritize American interests, though he provided limited details on potential new tariffs. According to Bruno Lamoral, a portfolio manager at DPAM, “Equity investors are optimistic, as the anticipated tax reductions and deregulation measures are expected to enhance corporate profitability.”
Christopher Dembik, an investment strategy advisor at Pictet AM, noted that while investors recall the volatility during Trump’s first term, they also remember the remarkable 68% surge in the S&P 500 during that period.
On the macroeconomic front, the United States released its Philly-FED manufacturing activity index today, reporting a decline to -9.1 from -3.4 in December. Meanwhile, in Europe, the economic sentiment of financial market experts regarding Germany has worsened in January, as indicated by the ZEW expectations index, which fell by 5.4 points to +10.3. Achim Wambach, president of the ZEW institute, attributes this decline to recent negative GDP growth figures and rising inflationary pressures.
Despite the downturn in expectations, the assessment of the current economic situation in Germany saw a slight improvement, with the corresponding index rising by 2.7 points to -90.4.
With US markets now open, the bond market has regained activity. The day has been positive for bonds, with the 2034 T-Bonds dropping by 5.7 points to 4.547%. This has allowed the yield on German ten-year Bunds to ease by 2 points to 2.47%, while the yield on OATs of the same maturity fell by 3 points to 3.269%.
On the commodities front, the Brent crude barrel is experiencing profit-taking, trading at approximately $79.5, down 0.4%. The euro remains stable against the US dollar, hovering around $1.041.
In corporate news, Thales Alenia Space and Hispasat have announced the commencement of the development, manufacturing, verification, and validation phase for the QKD-GEO prototype, a Spanish quantum key distribution system from geostationary orbit. Additionally, Lacroix has disclosed the sale of its City-Mobility segment to Swarco, with the transaction expected to finalize by the end of Q1 2025. Sopra Steria has also entered into a strategic alliance with the French startup XXII, specializing in computer vision, through its venture arm. Lastly, Renault Group has appointed Duncan Minto as the new Chief Financial Officer, effective March 1, succeeding Thierry Piéton, who will depart on February 28 for new professional endeavors.