Paris (AFP)

The Paris Bourse fell 1.16% Thursday shortly after opening, in the wake of a more measured tone than expected from the US central bank (Fed) in its latest report published Wednesday.

Around 9:30 am, the CAC 40 index lost 57.72 points to 4,919.51 points.

"The Fed's cautious tone has shaken the mood," said David Madden, analyst for CMC Markets UK.

In a document published on Wednesday, the participants in the last meeting of the American central bank underlined in particular that "the uncertainty surrounding the economic outlook (remains) very high, the trajectory of the economy depending heavily on that of the virus and the public sector's response to this ", ie the adoption of a new aid plan.

However, the White House and the elected Democrats of Congress have been discussing for several weeks new aid measures for businesses and households, as well as for local communities and schools, without reaching an agreement.

Wall Street closed in the red on Wednesday for the same reasons of caution in the face of the Fed's reaction: the Dow Jones lost 0.31%, the Nasdaq 0.57%, and the extended S&P 500 index 0.44 %.

The mood was more for celebration a few hours earlier.

On Wall Street Tuesday evening and Wednesday during the session, the records fell: the S&P 500 and Nasdaq indices reached new historic highs not seen even before the stock market disaster linked to Covid-19. Apple briefly exceeded the $ 2,000 billion market value threshold on Wednesday, a first for an American company.

On Wednesday, the Paris index had advanced 0.79% at the close, helped by the blast of Wall Street.

"With budget discussions at a standstill (in Congress) and no sign of further monetary stimulus on the horizon, investors have probably felt lonely on top of a mountain" since Wednesday evening, analysis Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst for Swissquote Bank.

In this context of return to earth, the news on the front of the virus does not particularly encourage optimism either. France has recorded over the past 24 hours more than 3,700 new cases of Covid-19, an unprecedented increase since May, and Germany on Thursday exceeded its peak of contamination in 24 hours since April.

© 2020 AFP