The Paris stock market is hovering close to its equilibrium this morning, around 8175 points (-0.1%), in a wait-and-see mood ahead of the long Easter weekend.

Investors remain on the sidelines, sticking to their positions ahead of the Easter weekend, which will see the Paris market close for Good Friday and Easter Monday.

Since last week's record highs, the CAC seems to be looking for direction, clearly stuck within a narrow range of fluctuation from 8150 to 8185 points.

The star index's inability to approach its major resistance zone at 8250 points illustrates investors' lack of conviction.

The recent highs recorded by stock markets around the world have pushed already high valuations to stretched levels, according to some investment strategists.

'Most of the performance of equity markets since the beginning of the year, and even over the last 18 months, has been due to the expansion of valuation multiples', emphasize JPMorgan's teams.

At global level, 12-month earnings forecasts have risen by only 7% from their lows, while the price/earnings ratio (P/E) has risen by almost 30%', the US bank points out.

At 21.4x expected earnings, the P/E of US equities is up 6% year-on-year, 20% since October 2023 and 30% since October 2022, notes JPMorgan.

In Europe, European price/earnings ratios are at similar levels, says the New York-based firm, albeit from a much lower starting point.

These high valuations risk preventing further upside and condemning markets to tread water if not accompanied by earnings growth, the strategists warn.

Our worry is that earnings growth will turn out to be disappointing", warns JPMorgan.

Investors now seem to be waiting for further signs of economic health and confirmation that inflation is easing, before continuing the upward trend that has been underway since the autumn.

With this in mind, the markets will turn their attention on Friday to the US household income and spending statistics, which will be accompanied by the 'PCE' component of prices, the Fed's preferred measure of inflation.

The good news for investors is that Goldman Sachs raised its target for the STOXX Europe 600 index by 6% on Monday, against a backdrop of re-accelerating growth and monetary easing, which still points to a potential 6% rise over 12 months.

In addition to the 8250-point mark, which remains the hurdle of the moment, the CAC could thus head for the psychological 8500-point threshold, before tackling the 8700-point resistance zone in the longer term.

In other French company news, composite fabric manufacturer SergeFerrari Group reports net income, group share (RNPG) for 2023 of 4.7 million euros, compared with 15.5 million in 2022, and REBIT of 11.3 million, compared with 26.5 million the previous year.

After an initial sale of Nissan shares last December, Renault Group announces a second operation with the intention of selling up to 100.242,900 Nissan shares, representing around 2.5% of the Japanese company's share capital.

Finally, OVHcloud announced on Wednesday the establishment of a strategic partnership with OneNeck IT Solutions, with the aim of offering services to their joint customer base, initially in the United States.


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