The flagship CAC 40 index fell 42.25 points to 7,351.61 points. Although modest, this decline is the largest in a month.
The Paris rating varies little because investors "wait for a new sequence to open," according to Raphaël Thuin, director of capital markets strategies at Tikehau Capital.
Market participants are waiting to hear more about company results. On Monday, those published by the bank First Republic, at the heart of the banking crisis of March, revived fears about the sector. In particular, the leakage of deposits observed during the first quarter.
"We didn't expect it to be so bad. But the feeling of stress is not excessive" on the sector, especially because the publications of the main American institutions previously "have been rather reassuring," said Thuin.
The earnings series continues all this week, with major tech companies in the U.S. in particular.
Between the close on Wednesday and the opening on Thursday, and just for the CAC 40, Carrefour, Vinci, Kering, Danone, Dassault Systemes, Worldline, Eurofins, Orange, Safran will publish their results.
The second element of expectation for investors is the central bank meetings next week.
Since the banking crisis, expectations about the level of central bank rates have fallen significantly, much more than the statements of monetary policymakers indicate.
Economic activity continues to come under pressure. U.S. consumer sentiment fell more than expected in April, particularly on medium-term confidence and recession fears.
Faced with renewed concern about the banking sector, Societe Generale (-3.25% to 21.59 euros) and BNP Paribas (-2.38% to 57.73 euros) finished at the bottom of the CAC 40 index. Crédit Agricole held up better (-1.49% to 10.81 euros), as during the March crisis.
The Orpéa group of retirement homes, whose share value has been massacred since January 2022, fell 16.98% to 2.41 euros. Very volatile, the share has lost a quarter of its value in two days, after the refusal of the board of directors on Monday to convene a general meeting requested by minority shareholders and resistant to the safeguard strategy put in place.
© 2023 AFP