The CAC 40 index lost 34.44 points to 6,490 points.

It had ended the day before up 0.80% at the start of a week where market activity is limited.

It should be noted, however, that low trading volumes tend to exacerbate variations.

In New York, the indices fell, pulled down by stocks in the technology sector.

The US consumer price index (CPI) figures are expected on Wednesday by feverish investors who are trying to better predict the next key rate hikes from the US central bank, the Fed, which has been working since March to bring inflation under control.

"Investors are confident that inflation in the United States may have peaked last month," according to Ipek Ozkardeskaya, analyst at SwissQuote, citing "the New York Fed's survey of consumer expectations which showed a sharp drop in inflation forecasts in July.”

The projections are banking on a slowdown in the rise in prices in the United States to +0.2% over the month (against +1.3% in June) and 8.7% over one year (against 9.1% the month last), which could finally suggest that inflation has peaked.

"A figure in line with expectations, or ideally lower, should calm expectations of Fed rate hikes, while a figure above expectations or above last month's 9.1%, would cause a new surge. shock on the market", warns Ipek Ozkardeskaya.

The euro rose again against the dollar on Tuesday, which has been losing momentum since the beginning of the week due to questions about the Fed's future policy.

Penalized "tech"

The "tech" sector fell on Tuesday, penalized by both disappointing results from American and Japanese companies specializing in semiconductors and by rising sovereign borrowing rates.

The Franco-Italian manufacturer STMicroelectronics ended down 5.23% (at 35.45 euros per share), dragged down by its Japanese counterparts Tokyo Electron (-8.25% at the close) and the American Micron Technology (-5.42%) which published disappointing results on Tuesday.

French software giant Dassault Systèmes ended down 1.50% at 41.98 euros and IT infrastructure provider OVHcloud lost 2.82% at 15.15 euros.

Eutelsat radiates

In a context of decline for "tech", the title of the French satellite operator Eutelsat remained in the green (+0.76%, to 8.64 euros) while the shipping company CMA CGM declared having crossed on August 5 the threshold of 5% of the capital and voting rights and holding 5.03% of the company.

The lagging car

The automotive sector also suffered from nervous markets on the eve of US inflation.

The French automotive supplier Michelin fell 3.46% during the session (to 26.83 euros per share), the car manufacturer Stellantis lost 2.50% (to 14.41 euros) and Renault 2, 09% (at 29.53 euros).

© 2022 AFP