Europe ends slightly up, between geopolitics and highly anticipated meeting with the Fed

* In Europe, the CAC 40 lost 0.26% and the Stoxx 600 gained 0.45%

* Wall Street prudente à mi-séance

* Fed monetary policy decision expected at 6:00 p.m. GMT

par Diana Mandia

European stock markets ended slightly up on Wednesday, with the exception of Paris, being more cautious towards the end of the session, after Donald Trump suggested that the protocol with Iran could still be modified, and awaiting the monetary policy decision of the Federal Reserve (Fed).

In Paris, the CAC 40 .FCHI ended down 0.20% at 8,430.79 points. The British Footsie .FTSE, on the other hand, gained 0.14% and the German Dax

.GDAXI gained 0.08%.

The EuroStoxx 50 .STOXX50E index ended up 0.64%, the FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3 gained 0.56% and the Stoxx 600 .STOXX rose 0.45%.

The market has been operating in a generally optimistic climate since Iran and the United States announced on Sunday a framework agreement aimed at ending their conflict and reopening the Strait of Hormuz, which led to a sharp drop in oil prices and improved morale. operators.

Pending the negotiations which will follow its official signing on Friday and while certain details on its content begin to be disclosed, the President of the United States, who is participating these days in the G7 summit in Evian (Haute-Savoie), has once again threatened Iran with new bombings if the text does not suit him not, thus suggesting that it is not yet definitive, which has somewhat dampened spirits.

The price of oil reversed its trend following these declarations and is starting to rise again, even if it remains well below its highest levels since the start of the conflict.

A senior American official also said that the agreement between the United States and Iran allowed Tehran to immediately resume its oil and fuel sales, which had been welcomed earlier in the session, because it paves the way for additional supplies of several million barrels.

In addition to the geopolitical situation, investors are preparing for the monetary policy decision of the Federal Reserve (Fed) at 6:00 p.m. GMT, the first of the mandate of Kevin Warsh, who took the reins of the American central bank at a particularly turbulent in terms of economic forecasts.

The decision itself should come as no surprise, as a status quo is widely expected, but the president’s comments at the following press conference, as well as his remarks on the economic outlook and monetary policy, will keep investors on their toes.

Kevin Warsh said he generally doesn’t like forward guidance on monetary policy, and by the last meeting it was clear that there are growing voices within the institution calling for an end to forward guidance. of a “trend towards easing” in favor of more neutral language suggesting the possibility that rate increases may prove necessary.

VALUES

Essilorluxottica ESLX.PA fell 4.7%, the bottom of the CAC 40, not benefiting from the announcement of its agreement with Applied Materials AMAT.O in intelligent optics for connected glasses.

Medincell MEDCL.PA plunged more than 12% after reporting on Tuesday a worsening of its operational loss for its 2025-2026 financial year.

Elsewhere in Europe, BMW BMWG.DE plunged 8.3% after lowering its forecasts for this year amid a slowdown in the Chinese market and the war in Iran. The automotive sector in Europe .SXAP dropped 3.3% in its wake.

The .SX8P technology sector gained 1.38% as the VivaTech show opened in Paris and the values ​​of chip manufacturers recovered in the United States after the losses of the day before.

A WALL STREET

The New York Stock Exchange is turning cautious before the decision of the Federal Reserve (Fed).

At closing time in Europe, the Dow Jones .DJI gained 0.49%, the Standard & Poor’s 500 .SPX, while the Standard & Poor’s-500 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC moved with small variations.

The semiconductor sector stands out after a difficult session the day before. Intel INTC.O, which announced Tuesday evening that the new generation of its 18A manufacturing process had entered the pilot production phase, takes 3.71%, while Broadcom AVGO.O advances by more than 5% and Micron Technology

MU.O is also 2.5%.

TODAY’S INDICATORS

Inflation in Great Britain (BoE) remained stable over one year in May, at 2.8%, allowing investors to moderate their expectations of a rate rise later in the year.

The Bank of England (BoE) will publish its monetary policy decision on Thursday and is expected to maintain interest rates at 3.75%.

“We expect the MPC to keep rates unchanged and hope it can maintain this position through the end of the year, seeking to balance growth concerns with lingering inflationary pressures,” writes David Zahn, head of European bond management at Franklin Templeton.

In the euro zone, consumer prices accelerated in May, as initially expected, to 3.2% year-on-year, after 3.0% in April.

In the United States, retail sales in the United States grew more than expected in May, according to data released Wednesday by the Commerce Department, which testifies to the resilience of the economy despite the impact of the war in the Middle East.

CHANGES

The dollar lost 0.15% against a basket of reference currencies .DXY, investors awaiting the Fed’s decision, while the euro lost 0.14% to 1.1591 dollars EUR=.

RATE

US Treasury yields are up slightly on Wednesday, with the May retail sales report turning out to be better than expected, and pending comments from Kevin Warsh after the Fed meeting.

In the euro zone, the yield on the ten-year German Bund DE10YT=RR fell by 1.6 basis points to 2.9246%, while that of the two-year bond DE10YT=RR ended the session at 2.5799%, also down slightly.

PATROL

The oil market was rather stable on Wednesday as the European stock markets closed and remained close to its three-month low reached the day before, even if Donald Trump’s comments regarding the agreement with Iran raised some doubts.

Brent LCOc1 gained 1.29% to $79.98 per barrel and American light crude (West Texas Intermediate, WTI) CLc1 gained 1.34% to $77.07.

Investors are also heeding the International Energy Agency’s warning of a supply glut next year if the situation in the Strait of Hormuz returns to normal, as well as figures for US oil reserves, which have reached their lowest level since 1985, according to the United States Energy Information Administration (EIA).

TO BE CONTINUED ON JUNE 18: nL8N42K1GH

(Some data may show a slight shift)

(Edited by Diana Mandiá, edited by Benoit Van Overstraeten)

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