PARIS/LONDON (dpa-AFX) – Positive impulses from the US stock exchanges gave momentum to Europe’s most important stock markets on Wednesday. After an indecisive roller coaster ride, the EuroStoxx 50 (EURO STOXX 50) ended trading 1.30 percent higher at 3732.54 points, just below the daily high it had just reached. In addition, the leading euro zone index is back to the level it was around eight weeks ago.
The French CAC 40 increased by 0.97 percent to 6472.06 points in the middle of the week. The British FTSE 100 gained 0.49 percent to 7445.68 points.
The current economic data from the United States ensured a good mood. It was not just US industry that received more orders than expected in June. The ISM purchasing managers’ index for the important services sector also rose surprisingly in July and also stabilized well above the 50-point mark, which signals growth. “In view of the worries about a recession in North America that are noticeable on the financial markets, we can speak of clearly positive news that comes as a surprise,” explained analyst Tobias Basse from NordLB.
The favorite in the EuroStoxx was the share of the insurer AXA with plus 5.7 percent. The French surprisingly increased their profits in the first half of the year, despite the burdens resulting from the Ukraine war. On average, analysts had expected a decline. In addition, the company wants to buy back its own shares from the market for one billion.
In the Cac 40, Societe Generale (Socit Gnrale (Societe Generale)) gained 3.1 percent according to the quarterly figures presented. Analyst Flora Bocahut from Jefferies praised the large bank’s figures, which were significantly better than expected. Adjusted pre-tax profit beat consensus estimates by about 50 percent, she wrote.
Just Eat Takeaway (Just Eat Takeawaycom) rose 5.4 percent on Euronext. The delivery service industry giant slipped significantly deeper into the red in the first half of the year due to a write-down on its US subsidiary Grubhub, but intends to report a positive operating profit again in 2023. In a conference call, CEO Jitse Groen emphasized that the threshold to profitability will be significantly closer in the next six months.
On the other hand, disappointing quarterly sales of hopeful Wegovy, a drug against obesity, pushed the shares of diabetes specialist Novo Nordisk down by 8.5 percent.
In addition, Avast shares attracted attention in London. They shot up nearly 44 percent after the UK approved the purchase of the Czech security software company by US rival NortonLifeLock. The competition authority thus concluded a more in-depth investigation that had raised doubts about the success of the takeover./ck/ngu