European stock markets are expected to rise this Thursday, February 15, 2024. This was before Lagarde and under an avalanche of corporate results. The Eurostoxx 50 opened at 4,709.22 points (+0.43%), the CAC 40 at 7,677.35 points (+0.68%), the DAX 40 at 16,945.48 points (+0.38%), the FTSE 100 at 7,568.40 points (+0.43%), the FTSE 100 at 7,568.40 points (+0.43%), the SMI at 11,213.64 points (+0.64%), the AEX at 843.67 points (+0.12%), the DJIA at 38,424.27 points (+0.40%), the Nasdaq at 15,859.15 points (+1.30%), the S&P 500 at 5,000.62 points (+0.96%) and the Nikkei 225 at 38,157.94 points (+1.21%

On the exchange rate side, the change from the close in New York indicates that the EUR/USD was 1.0732 (+0.03%), the EUR/JPY at 161.10 (-0.28%) and the USD/JPY at 150.15 (-0.30%).

Corporate results are still numerous on Thursday. Among the main publications expected are those of Airbus, Stellantis, Safran, Safran, Schneider Electric, Schneider Electric, Orange, Pernod Ricard, TF1, la Française des Jeux (FDJ), Euronext, Nexans, Nexans, Safran, Safran, Schneider Electric, Schneider Electric, Orange, Pernod Ricard, TF1, La Française des Jeux (FDJ), Euronext, Nex On Wednesday evening, the car manufacturer Renault published “record” results for 2023, confirming the recovery in its profitability, but it has set rather cautious objectives for the current year, where the group will continue its commercial offensive in an uncertain context

European equity markets are expected to rise at the open on Thursday, ahead of the quarterly hearing of the President of the European Central Bank (ECB), Christine Lagarde, before the European Parliament's Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, before the European Parliament's Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, which will start at 9:00am. Investors will also react to an avalanche of corporate results published between Wednesday evening and Thursday morning, as well as to several economic indicators, including the United Kingdom's gross domestic product (GDP) in the fourth quarter, retail sales and industrial production in the United

At 7:30, the CAC 40 futures contract gained 29 points, or 0.4%, according to data from broker IG. The DAX 40 contract took 50 points, or 0.3%, while the FTSE 100 contract rose by 27 points, or 0.4%. On Wednesday evening, Wall Street resumed its march forward after being destabilized the day before by the poor inflation figures in the United States, which came to dampen hopes of a rapid fall in interest rates from the Federal Reserve (Fed). The Dow Jones Index (DJIA) closed up 0.4% on Wednesday, the expanded S&P 500 index rose 1% and the Nasdaq Composite, rich in technology stocks,

Inflation that's temporarily higher than expected won't necessarily be an obstacle to a rate cut in the coming months, Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee said Wednesday. Higher inflation for a few months “remains compatible with a trajectory that will bring it back to the target”, said the official at a conference organized by the Council of Foreign Relations. Austan Goolsbee also echoed the statement of Fed Chairman Jerome Powell that the rate cut can be initiated before inflation actually returns to an annual rate of 2%. The current level of US key rates is “really restrictive”, observed the central banker. “If we remain so restrictive for too long, we will have to fear” an excessive rise in unemployment

For his part, Fed Vice President in charge of regulatory issues, Michael Barr, assured that the difficulties recently encountered by New York Community Bancorp did not reflect a systemic problem in the American banking sector.

NYCB shares fell sharply in February after the publication of an unexpected quarterly loss, just as the bank is experiencing difficulties in its commercial real estate loan portfolio. Regional banks were again under pressure this week on Wall Street after the announcement of a rise in consumer prices that exceeded expectations in January across the Atlantic. In Asia, markets rose on Thursday. The Nikkei index on the Tokyo Stock Exchange rose 1.2% to 38,157.94 points, its highest level since January 1990. Hang Seng rose 0.2% at the end of trading in Hong Kong. Chinese markets are still closed for Lunar New Year celebrations.

US Treasury bond yields were trending lower on Thursday morning as traders questioned whether the reaction to the US inflation figures, which were higher than expected in January, was not excessive. “The consumer price index released on Tuesday was an unpleasant shock that caused a major market reaction. The question now is whether that reaction was enough or too strong,” said Chris Low, chief economist at FHN Financial

The euro is trading little against the dollar on Thursday, as currency traders await Christine Lagarde's hearing before the European Parliament. At 7:25am, the single currency was almost unchanged at 1.0730 dollars

Oil contracts fell on Thursday morning, as the US Department of Energy (EIA) reported an increase of 12 million barrels in reserves, to 439.5 million barrels, during the week ending February 9. Analysts polled by the Wall Street Journal expected an increase of only 2.8 million barrels compared to the previous week. However, gasoline inventories fell by 3.7 million barrels last week, and inventories of distillates, which include heating oil and diesel, also fell, limiting the fall in crude prices, ANZ said. At 7:20 a.m., the April contract for North Sea Brent lost 32 cents, to 81.28 dollars per barrel, and the March contract for light sweet crude (WTI) listed on the Nymex lost 33 cents, to 76.31 dollars per