French Market Roughly Flat At Noon As Traders Weigh Weak PMI Data

(RTTNews) - French stocks turned in a mixed performance Tuesday morning as investors reacted to the data showing stagnation in the nation's private sector activity in December, and looked ahead to some crucial U.S. data, including the jobs report, for clues about Fed's monetary policy in the coming months.

The benchmark CAC 40 was down 8.27 points or 0.1% at 8,116.61 at noon.

Accor climbed nearly 2%. Stellantis, Credit Agricole, LVMH, Saint Gobain, Capgemini, Bureau Veritas, Michelin, Pernod Ricard, Renault and Carrefour gained 1 to 1.7%.

Kering moved up sharply earlier in the session, but pared gains subsequently and was up just marginally around noon. The stock attracted attention after the company sold a majority stake in its Fifth Avenue property to Ardian for $690 million, while retaining 40% ownership.

Thales drifted down 2.1%. Airbus eased by neary 1% and STMicroElectronics declined by about 1.9%. Dassault Systemes, Orange, TotalEnergies and EssilorLuxottica posted modest losses.

According to flash survey results from S&P Global, France's headline HCOB composite output index posted 50.1 in December, down from 50.4 in November. However, a reading above the threshold 50.0 indicates expansion.

The services Purchasing Managers' Index fell to a two-month low of 50.2 from 51.4 in November. At 50.6, the manufacturing PMI hit a 40-month high, up from 47.8 a month ago.

The HCOB Flash Eurozone Composite PMI fell to 51.9 in December, its lowest level in three months, down from 52.8 in November. Private sector PMI came in at 52.6, compared ot 53.6, while manufacturing PMI was 49.2 in the month, as against 59.6 in the previous month.

The ZEW Indicator of Economic Sentiment for the Euro Area climbed by 8.7 points from the prior month to 33.7 in December, the highest reading in five months.

Data from Eurostat showed the Eurozone's trade surplus widened to €18.4 billion in October 2025 from €7.1 billion a year earlier.