Paris (AFP)

The Paris Bourse ended stable on Wednesday, the National Day holiday, after a session passed in the red before investors were reassured by the cautious comments of the president of the American Central Bank (Fed).

The flagship CAC 40 index lost 0.09 points to 6,558.38 points, in low trading volume due to July 14.

The day before, he had also finished in equilibrium (-0.01%).

"The Paris Bourse remained sluggish for a large part of the session and only took advantage of Jerome Powell's statements to briefly rebound" above its closing level the day before, notes Denis Ducatel, expert in financial investments at Milleis Banque .

After the publication on Tuesday of a stronger than expected rise in consumer prices in June in the United States, the president of the Fed once again tried to reassure the markets on the evolution of monetary policy.

Inflation "should remain high in the coming months before slowing down," said Jerome Powell Wednesday afternoon to elected representatives of the House of Representatives, according to his speech published upstream.

Employment remains far from the maximum level that the Fed wants to reach before reducing its support, and the institution assures that it "will continue to provide powerful support to the economy until the recovery is complete", he added.

"Jerome Powel has not changed his speech, (...) a tightening of the Fed's monetary policy is not a subject in the short term," notes Mr. Ducatel.

The Fed's Beige Book will also be released in the evening.

The European Commission on Wednesday unveiled its plan for a legislative "big bang" to achieve the EU's climate objectives, including a plan to tax kerosene in the air.

The values ​​of the airline sector, already penalized by concerns related to the progression of the Delta variant and the generalization of the health pass in France, struggled after this announcement.

Air France-KLM lost 2.51% to 3.81 euros and Aéroports de Paris (ADP), manager of Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle and Orly airports, fell 1.69% to 107.45 euros.

© 2021 AFP