(New York) European markets digested Thursday the decision of the European Central Bank (ECB) to raise its key rates, a first since 2011, while Wall Street offered a positive session thanks to less bad corporate results provided that.
Updated yesterday at 5:04 p.m.
Despite high volatility during the session, European stock markets finally closed close to their pre-meeting level.
Paris ended up 0.27%, London 0.09%, according to final results, and Frankfurt down 0.27%. Weighed down by political uncertainty, the Milan Stock Exchange fell 0.71%.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones gained 0.51%, the tech-heavy NASDAQ index gained 1.36%, and the broader S&P 500 index advanced 0.99%.
The ECB raised its three main rates on Thursday by half a percentage point, against a quarter of a point initially planned.
“There was a need” to make such an increase to put an end to the era of negative rates that began in 2014, analyzed Vincent Juvyns, of JPMorgan AM.
This half-surprise benefited the euro, which was up 0.45% against the greenback, at 1.0226 dollars.
The Frankfurt institution was also expected to provide details on the new instrument intended to protect the most fragile states against speculative attacks on their debt.
The fact that the mechanism can only be activated under economic conditions, which favor budgetary discipline, “instil doubt” on the real use and the scale of the device, explained Franck Dixmier, director of bond management at Allianz IG .
This disappointment increased the pressure on Italy after the resignation of Prime Minister Mario Draghi and was felt on bond rates.
The Italian 10-year interest rate was the only one to end up sharply among the main eurozone countries and the closely scrutinized gap between German and Italian rates widened on Thursday.
The tone was quite different on Wall Street, still well oriented by the results of companies, which if they are worse than the previous quarter, have not seen any major accident so far.
“The market treats these companies well as long as the figures are less bad” than expected, explained Quincy Krosby of LPL Financial.
Symbol of this dynamic, Tesla (+9.78% to 815.12 dollars), which did less well than expected on its turnover and failed to publish a new record profit, but which investors nevertheless welcomed because a solid result and confirmed forecasts.
Results in shambles
Among the hailed results of the session, the Finnish telecom equipment manufacturer Nokia (+9.29%), the global communications giant Publicis (+5.05%) and the car manufacturer Tesla (+7.36%).
Conversely, the Swedish household appliance group Electrolux (-3.95%), the German software specialist SAP (-2.84%), the chemical group Dow (-3.13%) or the airlines United Airlines (10.17%) and American Airlines (-7.43%) have unscrewed.
Oil decline, gas stability
Oil prices fell on Thursday, weighed down by a jump in gasoline reserves in the United States implying a drop in demand, when crude production resumed in Libya after three months of disruption.
The barrel of Brent from the North Sea for delivery in September lost 2.86% to 103.86 dollars after dropping more than 4% in session.
The barrel of American West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for delivery the same month, which was the first day of use as a benchmark contract, fell 3.53% to 96.35 dollars, shortly after having unscrewed by 5%.
The European natural gas market remained stable at 156 euros per megawatt hour after the reopening on Thursday, but with a reduced flow, of the Nord Stream gas pipeline linking Russia to Germany.