This week, two European central banks took center stage by unveiling their first monetary policy decisions of 2026.

The Governing Council of the European Central Bank (ECB) made no changes to its monetary policy, keeping the deposit facility, main refinancing operations, and marginal lending facility rates unchanged at 2, 2.15, and 2.40% respectively.

"The ECB kept its rates unchanged at 2% for the fifth consecutive meeting, as expected. More importantly, it maintained a wait-and-see and neutral stance on future decisions despite rising geopolitical risks and currency volatility at the start of the year. This suggests it would take a significant shift in outlook and financial conditions for the ECB to change its rates this year. We expect rates to remain stable until next year," said Xavier Chapard, strategist at LBP AM.

"That being said, inflation slowed more than expected in the eurozone in January, supporting our forecast of inflation sustainably below target from mid-year onwards and implying that risks to ECB rates remain tilted to the downside for 2026. Headline inflation has dropped well below target, at 1.7%, and core inflation slowed to a four-year low at 2.2%," the analyst added.

"The ECB's communication acknowledges the fundamental resilience of the economy, but places growing emphasis on the uncertainties weighing on the outlook. The statement highlights increased attention to external risks, whether global trade tensions or geopolitical instability, indicating that these factors have become more important and now play a central role in the ECB's overall assessment of the economic situation," commented Valentin Bissat, chief economist & senior strategist, and Marie Thibout, economist and senior strategist at Mirabaud.

Additionally, the Bank of England also announced no change to its monetary policy, keeping its key rate at 3.75%. "The difference with the ECB lies in the fact that the BoE is still considered to be in an easing phase, with the last rate cut occurring at the December 2025 meeting, while the ECB's last cut dates back to June 2025. Indeed, the BoE's decision can be described as an accommodative status quo, with five members of its Monetary Policy Committee voting to hold rates and four voting for a cut," noted Paul Jackson, Global Head of Asset Allocation Research at Invesco.

Stellantis Sinks, Vinci Leads the CAC 40

On the Paris market, Stellantis (-25.24%) suffered a sharp drop. The Franco-Italian-American multinational automotive group saw the steepest fall on the CAC 40 after booking exceptional charges of around 22 billion euros in its 2025 results.

Société Générale (-2.21%) also declined despite a strong performance in 2025. The bank reported record revenues of 27.3 billion euros, up sharply by 6.8% year-on-year. Its group share net income reached 6 billion euros, a 43% increase.

Conversely, Vinci (up nearly 10%) led the CAC 40 after posting solid 2025 results and promising 2026 prospects. The global leader in concessions, energy services, and construction recorded a record free cash flow of 7.01 billion euros, up 202 million euros. Excluding the impact of the tax surcharge (425 million euros), free cash flow stood at 7.44 billion euros, up 9% year-on-year.

In Europe, among the top performers on the OMX Copenhagen this Friday, Orsted (+3.48%) rose on the back of overall satisfactory 2025 results and ongoing expected EBITDA growth for 2026 and 2027.

Yesterday, in a brief press release, Anglo-Australian multinational mining group Rio Tinto confirmed media rumors by stating it was no longer considering a possible merger or other business combination with Glencore (the Anglo-Swiss commodity trading and mining company). Rio Tinto explained the decision was made because it could not reach an agreement that would create value for its shareholders. Following this announcement, Rio Tinto shares closed down 2.78% yesterday, while Glencore fell by almost 8%.

Furthermore, the arrival of next-generation automation tools, driven by players such as Anthropic, has shaken up the tech sector's balance this week. Investors fear a cannibalization effect, worrying that these new tools could render the business models of leading SaaS (Software as a Service) companies obsolete rather than complementing them. Tech giants such as Microsoft, Salesforce, and Adobe are seeing their dominance threatened by these more agile and potentially more effective solutions. As a result, these companies' shares dropped sharply on Wall Street this week, as did Capgemini in Paris.

Next week, more corporate results are expected. In Paris, Capgemini, EssilorLuxottica, Hermès, Kering, L'Oreal, Safran, and TotalEnergies are due to report. In the United States, results from Coca-Cola and Airbnb will also be closely watched.