The Paris Bourse got off to a good start in August after falling 3% in July. The growth of manufacturing activity in United States, in euro areas et en China is the main driving force behind this session. Another element of support, the White House is considering putting in place its own measures of additional assistance for the unemployed in the event that Congress fails to reach an agreement. According to sources familiar with the matter cited by Bloomberg, the administration is indeed worried about the impact of the expiration, last Friday, of the additional allowance of $ 600 per week intended for the unemployed.
The elected representatives of Congress have in fact still not managed to agree on a new support plan for households and businesses while the additional aid intended for the unemployed expired on July 31. Mark Meadows, Secretary General of the White House, said he was pessimistic about the prospect of a short-term deal. The positions of the White House and the Treasury remain very far from those of elected Democrats after a meeting Sunday between Mark Meadows, Steven Mnuchin and Nancy Pelosi, the president and leader of the Democratic majority in the House of Representatives. Discussions resume on Monday with the imperative to seal an agreement before Friday, when the Senate will be on vacation.
The growing global industry
In New York, the Nasdaq Composite set a new record shortly after the opening thanks to Apple (+ 3.2%) and Microsoft (+ 3.6%). The software giant has confirmed talks with Donald Trump in order to obtain the green light to acquisition of the activities of Chinese TikTok in the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Sunday that the Trump administration will soon take action against several Chinese technology companies for national security reasons.
On the macroeconomic level, manufacturing activity continued to expand in July in the United States, with the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) index advancing to 54.2 points, against 53.6 expected and 52.6 in June. A figure above 50 reflects an expansion of activity, while an index below this threshold is synonymous with contraction. In the euro zone, the final index IHS Markit Manufacturing PMI stood at 51.8 points in the euro zone in July (51.1 in flash data), its first passage above the critical threshold of 50 since February 2019, after 47.4 in June. Finally, in China, the PMI Caixin index rose to 52.8 points, its best level in nearly 10 years, after 51.2 in June.
In closing, the Cac 40 gained 1.93% to 4,875.73 points in a business volume of 3.59 billion euros. In New York, the Dow Jones advance of 0.95% and the Nasdaq Composite of 1.34%.
Unibail sanctioned, Total in support of choice
Against the trend, tourism values remain affected by fears aroused by the evolution of the health crisis in the world. Air France-KLM yielded 3.4%. Down during most of the session, Societe Generale ended up almost stable (-0.7%). The bank recorded a net loss of 1.26 billion euros in the second quarter and will step up its cost reduction effort.
The good European PMI indices, on the other hand, support large industrialists Saint Gobain (+ 4.8%). The automotive sector is also recovering. Peugeot and Renault gained 2.2% and 4.7% respectively, especially as new car registrations rose 3.9% in France last month.
STMicroelectronics gained 3.1% in the wake of the new Nasdaq Composite record in New York. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Sox Index is also moving to new highs.
Fourth capitalization and strong support from the Cac 40 this Monday, Total wins 3.5%. Morgan Stanley raised its recommendation on the title of the oil group from “online weighting” to “overweighting”. Among other analyst recommendations, HSBC moved from “hold” to “buy” on Engie, which takes 4.9%.
Note the new historical records ofLiquid air and of Teleperformance.
Conversely, Barclays lowered its price target on Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield from 65 to 50 euros while maintaining its opinion to be “underweight”. The title of the property company drops 6.2%.
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