French stocks were slightly lower on Friday as worries about a U.S. recession kept investors’ risk appetite in check.
After weak manufacturing and weekly jobless claims data, all eyes remain on the U.S. payrolls data, due later in the day that could shed some more light on the state of the economy and the Fed’s rate path.
The benchmark CAC 40 was down 24 points, or 0.3 percent, at 7,347 after plummeting 2.1 percent the previous day.
Insurer AXA rallied 2.1 percent. Its arm AXA Investment Managers has entered into negotiations to sell its investment arm to BNP Paribas in a €5.1bn deal. Shares of BNP Paribas were down 1.3 percent.
Energy company Engie jumped 3.5 percent. The company lifted its profit guidance for 2024, citing a strong first-half performance in power generation and lower-than-expected financial costs.
CAC 40 Drifts Lower Ahead Of US Jobs Data
2024-08-02 09:08:24
