French stocks recouped early losses to trade on a flat note Friday after data showed the country’s services sector returned to growth in April. Underlying sentiment remained cautious somewhat amid reports of a Biden capital gains tax hike.
The benchmark CAC 40 was marginally lower at 6,266 after climbing 0.9 percent in the previous session.
Remy Cointreau shares were down 0.7 percent. The spirits maker said that sales were slightly up in its full fiscal year, adjusted for currency effects.
Air Liquide dipped 0.4 percent after the industrial gases company reported lower revenue in the first quarter.
EDF shares were down more than 2 percent. France’s Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire was quoted as saying by the Ouest-France newspaper in an interview that he was ditching the “Project Hercules” name of a planned restructuring of the power group.
In economic releases, France’s private sector returned to growth for the first time since August 2020, driven by a fresh increase in services activity amid continuing manufacturing sector growth, flash survey data from IHS Markit showed.
The flash composite output index advanced unexpectedly to 51.7 in April from 50.0 in March as a fresh increase in services activity outweighed a slight slowdown in manufacturing growth. The score was forecast to fall to 48.8.
CAC 40 Little Changed In Choppy Trade
2021-04-23 09:15:41
