CAC 40 Down Nearly 0.4% As Middle East Concerns Push Up Oil Prices

(RTTNews) - The French stock market's benchmark index CAC 40 drifted lower on Thursday with investors largely making cautious moves amid an escalation in tensions in the Middle East.

Oil prices climbed higher, triggering concerns about inflation and possible interest rate hikes by central banks.

Brent crude futures climbed to $95.98 a barrel before easing to around $94.00, still up nearly 2% from previous close.

According to Reuters, the U.S. launched fresh strikes in Iran near the Strait of Hormuz in the wee hours of Thursday, striking for the second time in 48 hours.

Iran said a return to war was unlikely, while Trump told a televised White House cabinet meeting that Tehran wanted a deal but had not yet offered enough.

"Iran is very much intent, they want very much to make a deal. So far they haven't gotten there. We're not satisfied with it, but we will be," he said. "Either that or we'll have to just finish the job."

The CAC 40, which dropped to 8,161.99, was down 30.56 points or 0.37% at 8,177.33 a few minutes past noon.

Dassault Systemes dropped by about 2.3%. Societe Generale, LVMH, Hermes International, Eiffage, Eurofins Scientific and Danone shed 1.4%-2%.

Sanofi dropped 14% despite FDA grating priority review for venglustat to treat Gaucher disease.

Stellantis, Saint-Gobain, AXA, Pernod Ricard, Bureau Veritas, BNP Paribas, Michelin, Credit Agricole, Renault, Engie, Capgemini and Veolia Environment were down 0.7%-1.2%.

STMicroelectronics moved up 2.55% and Thales gained about 2.4%. Airbus, L'Oreal, Safran, Air Liquide and TotalEnergies gained 0.5%-1%.

Data from statistical office INSEE showed French domestic producer prices fell 2.1% month-on-month in April, reversing a revised 1.9% increase in March. The fall was the steepest since April last year. On an annual basis, domestic producer prices jumped 2.1%, the most since June 2023, after being flat in March.