Paris (AFP)

The Paris Bourse rose 0.29% on Thursday at mid-session, starting the second quarter on the right foot thanks to the announcement of a new US infrastructure stimulus plan, and despite new restrictions announced by France .

At 12:13, the flagship CAC 40 index took 17.40 points to 6,084.63 points, the day after a decline of 0.34% and on the eve of a long Easter weekend.

Wall Street was moving towards a positive opening.

"The European markets start the second quarter up, the announcements of the American and French presidents having not reserved any unpleasant surprises", underlines Franklin Pichard, the managing director of Kiplink Finance.

It is however not sure that this new quarter is "that of the recovery", according to him.

"The pandemic appears more virulent than expected a few months ago. Suddenly, France, the second largest European economy, has imposed a sort of third confinement".

Closure of schools for three to four weeks, extension of restrictions to the entire metropolis, limited travel: President Emmanuel Macron announced on Wednesday a new turn of the screw while the health situation has been deteriorating for several weeks in France.

"Even with a strong rebound in activity from early May, the stricter restrictions in April will weigh heavily on second quarter GDP," warns Christopher Dembik, associate director at Berenberg.

In the United States, President Joe Biden has proposed investing some 2,000 billion dollars in infrastructure, with the stated objective of creating “millions of jobs”, standing up to China and fighting climate change.

In terms of indicators, French manufacturing activity and employment saw their strongest growth in more than 20 years in March, even though raw material shortages raise concerns about supply chains, IHS Markit reported on Thursday. .

The ISM manufacturing activity index for March is expected in the afternoon in the United States.

Atos in delicacy

The French IT giant plunged 14.13% to 57.12 euros, penalized by the announcement of an audit on American subsidiaries representing 11% of its turnover after "accounting errors" in fiscal year 2020.

Solutions 30 leaps

Conversely, Solutions 30 jumped 28.41% to 13.92 euros, driven by the publication of an audit clearing it of accusations of "money laundering" and "fraud" which had targeted it since December.

Vinci thinks big

Vinci climbed 3.04% to 90.02 euros in the wake of the announcement that it would acquire the energy business of Spanish construction group ACS for around 4.9 billion euros, in order to become a large in the renewable energy sector.

Job cuts at Danone

Danone sold 0.36% to 58.29 euros.

The agri-food giant said it was considering cutting 1,850 jobs worldwide, including 458 in France as part of its reorganization project.

This is a little less than the "up to 2,000 job cuts" mentioned in November.

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