The CAC 40 Index Closes 2.03% Lower

The CAC 40 Index decreased 169 points or 2.03 percent on Wednesday to close at 8149 points. The decline was led by Kering (-4.73%), Capgemini (-4.17%) and Saint-Gobain (-4.07%).

The CAC 40 fell 1.9% to close at 8,162 on Wednesday, reversing the previous session’s gains and hitting its lowest level since July as Middle East tensions escalated. Oil prices remained elevated after the US and Iran exchanged strikes near the Strait of Hormuz, heightening inflation concerns and reinforcing expectations that the ECB will raise interest rates by 25 basis points at Thursday’s policy meeting. Domestically, industrial production fell 0.4% month-over-month in July, missing expectations for a 0.3% increase. Losses were broad-based, with industrial and luxury stocks weighing heavily on the index. Airbus fell 2.2% after cutting its long-term demand outlook for single-aisle aircraft in China. Safran shed 3.2%, Thales retreated 3%, Legrand fell 3.8%, and Schneider Electric dropped 3.3%. Luxury stocks also declined amid increased risk aversion, with LVMH falling 3% to its lowest level since November 2020, Hermès shedding 2.2%, and Kering tumbling 4.7%.

The CAC 40 fell 0.6% to 8,269 on Wednesday, reversing the previous session’s gains and hitting its lowest level since July, as escalating Middle East tensions kept risk appetite in check. Oil prices remained elevated after Iran said it had struck two US vessels and eight oil tankers in the Gulf in retaliation for American attacks on five Iranian tankers near Kharg Island. The latest developments heightened inflation concerns and reinforced expectations that the European Central Bank will raise interest rates by 25 basis points at Thursday’s policy meeting. Domestically, industrial production slipped 0.4% month-on-month in July, defying market expectations for a 0.3% rise and extending June’s revised 0.1% decline. Luxury stocks led the retreat, with LVMH sliding 1.4% to its lowest level since November 2020 and Kering losing 2.3%. Elsewhere, Airbus fell 1.6% after cutting its long-term demand outlook for single-aisle aircraft in China.