The Paris stock market is down nearly 0.5% this morning, around 8,200 points, penalized in particular by Stellantis (-1.8%) and Schneider Electric (-1.4%).

Investors are pausing for a moment, still wondering how to interpret better-than-expected inflation figures in the USA.

Rising to 3.6% in April, the CPI 'core' consumer price index - which measures inflation excluding food and energy - slowed to its lowest level in two years.

While the markets seemed relieved that the closely-watched inflation data did not, as in March, show a larger-than-expected increase, we still regard the data as worrying", moderates Tiffany Wilding, economist at Pimco.

"The US will indeed need a more substantial deceleration in consumer goods prices before the Federal Reserve will consider easing monetary policy", she adds.

For Deutsche Bank, the most important thing is that inflation 'moves in the right direction after the higher figures published for the first three months of the year'.

Thursday will be punctuated by the publication of new US indicators, including the latest housing figures, import prices and unemployment benefit registrations.

On the sovereign debt front, the yield on 10-year Treasuries is easing sharply, to around 4.33%, its lowest level in just over a month.

The German 10-year, the benchmark for the eurozone, is falling to 2.41% on the increasingly serious prospect of a rate cut by the ECB as early as next month.

Oil prices continue to rally in the wake of last week's announcement of a slight weekly decline in US crude oil inventories. Brent gained 0.15% to around $83 a barrel.

In French company news, automotive supplier Valeo reported that it had acquired 2,175,683 of its own shares on May 13, at an average price of nearly 11.50 euros.

Vallourec reports first-quarter 2024 EPS of 0.43 euros, compared with 0.66 euros a year earlier, and EBITDA (gross operating income) down 27% to 235 million euros, representing a margin down 0.2 points to 23.7% of sales.

Finally, Eurazeo announces assets under management (AUM) of 34.8 billion euros at the end of March 2024, up 8% year-on-year, including fee-generating assets (FPAUM) of 25.6 billion (+8% year-on-year).

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