French stocks held steady on Friday and U.S. Treasury yields hovered near multi-month lows as investors awaited the release of U.S. retail sales and consumer sentiment figures later in the day for more clues on the economic outlook.
The benchmark CAC 40 index was marginally lower at 6,492 after closing 1 percent lower on Thursday.
Travel and leisure stocks were moving higher, with airline Air France KLM rallying nearly 3 percent after U.S. President Joe Biden said the United States is reviewing when it can lift the COVID-related travel ban for European citizens.
Automaker Renault rose over 1 percent after industry data showed Europe’s passenger car registrations increased at a moderate pace in June.
Car registrations increased 10.4 percent year-on-year in June, but slower than the 53.4 percent growth posted in May, the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association said.
Among the major EU car markets, Germany posted the biggest gain with a 24.5 percent increase. In France, by contrast, passenger car sales contracted 14.7 percent.
Market Analysis
CAC 40 Holds Steady Ahead Of US Data
2021-07-16 09:25:37
