Paris (AFP)

The Paris Stock Exchange ended up slightly on Monday (+ 0.27%), investors, reassured by the voluntarism of the Chinese central bank against the coronavirus, preferring however to spare themselves in the absence of Wall Street.

The CAC 40 index gained 16.60 points to 6,085.95 points, in a low trading volume of 2.6 billion euros. On Friday, it finished down 0.39%.

"The day was very calm and wait-and-see due to the closing of the American markets," said AFP Lara Nguyen, expert in financial investments at Milleis Bank.

The coronavirus remains the main subject of attention, even if "the market is showing great resilience" in the matter, added the expert.

"During the SARS epidemic between December 2002 and March 2003, the CAC 40 index had lost 20% whereas since the start of the coronavirus index it had lost only 2%," she observed. "However at the time, China represented only 5% of world GDP against 17% currently".

"It is really the support of central banks that makes the difference," she added.

The Chinese Central Bank has also provided an illustration on Monday by further reducing the cost of funding commercial banks, as part of the all-out efforts by Beijing to support an economy paralyzed by the epidemic of the new coronavirus.

The issuing institution offered Monday 200 billion yuan (26.4 billion euros) to banks in the form of medium-term loan facilities (MLF) one year, and this on improved terms.

The requested interest rate was therefore lowered to 3.15%, the lowest since 2017, compared to 3.25% previously.

The toll of the viral pneumonia epidemic rose to nearly 1,770 dead in mainland China on Monday, according to published official figures which confirm a decline, even if the World Health Organization warned that the spread of the coronavirus remains "impossible predictable".

- Alstom's leap -

For Ms. Nguyen, in addition to the central banks, "the publications of companies overall higher than expected both in Europe and in the United States also give additional support to stock market indices".

In the securities field, Faurecia gained 6.53% to 45.83 euros, boosted by profitability maintained last year and a cash flow higher than expected.

The automotive sector was generally well oriented, like Valeo (+ 1.80% to 27.70 euros), Plastic Omnium (+ 1.93% to 23.75 euros), Peugeot (+ 0.98% to 19.56 euros) or Michelin (+ 3.17% to 112.25 euros).

Renault on the other hand suffered (-4.26% to 33.03) from a lowering of its recommendation by AlphaValue and of its target price for the title by Deutsche Bank.

Alstom, for its part, was boosted (+ 3.50% to 50.30 euros) by the confirmation on Monday of talks with a view to "a potential acquisition of Bombardier Transportation", the railway branch of the Canadian group Bombardier.

Airbus managed to end up in the green (+ 0.86% to 130.98 euros), despite the American announcement of an increase to 15% from March 18 of the customs taxes imposed on Airbus aircraft imported from Europe.

© 2020 AFP