CAC 40 Down Nearly 1% As Middle East Concerns Weigh
(RTTNews) - After posting gains in the previous two sessions, French stocks fell on Tuesday as concerns about Middle East conflict returned to haunt sentiment following fresh military action by the U.S. against Iranian targets.
Fears of possible interest rate hikes by the European Central Bank next month hurt as well. The ECB should raise interest rates in June even if there's a quick resolution to the Middle East conflict, ECB Executive Board member Isabel Schnabel said today.
The U.S. conducted 'self-defense strikes' on Iranian missile launch sites and boats near the Strait of Hormuz, clouding the outlook for an interim deal between Washington and Tehran.
Defense forces across the Gulf are on high alert as Iran pressed ahead with waves of missile and drone attacks on the UAE, Kuwait and Bahrain.
French benchmark CAC 40 was down 77.05 points or 0.93% at 8,181.21 a little while ago.
Hermes International dropped by 3.2%. Schneider Electric shed 2.1%, while Kering, Safran, LVMH, Publicis Groupe, Pernod Ricard, Bureau Veritas, Eurofins Scientific, Accor, Saint-Gobain and Dassault Systemes lost 1%-1.7%.
Airbus, Orange, Societe Generale, Sanofi, EssilorLuxottica, Eiffage, Vinci, Air Liquide and Bouygues also drifted lower.
STMicroelectronics moved up more than 1.5%. AXA, Engie, Renault, Carrefour and Credit Agricole posted modest gains.
