European stock markets could open lower on Thursday, after posting a sixth session of increase in a row on Wednesday.

Around 7:40 a.m., the CAC 40 futures contract lost 0.2%, according to data from broker IG.

On Wednesday evening, the small home equipment specialist Seb announced the acquisition of the kitchenware manufacturer La Brigade de Buyer from Edify. The amount of the transaction was not disclosed. Seb will publish on Thursday, after the market closes, its preliminary data concerning its sales in 2024

The manufacturer of perfumes under licenses Interperfumes raised its current operating margin forecast for 2024 on Thursday, after recording sales in line with its expectations for the full year.

Valneva for its part announced positive phase 2 results in children for Ixchiq, its single-dose vaccine against the chikungunya virus.

The car manufacturer Stellantis is planning massive investments in its factories in the United States, while the American President, Donald Trump, has raised the threat of a global trade war that could penalize the entire sector.

The collective catering group Elior announced on Thursday the success of its senior bond issue at a rate of 5.625% and due 2030, for an amount of 500 million euros.

At the start of the session, European equity markets are expected to fall slightly on Thursday. Investors continue to watch US President Donald Trump's political announcements. According to data from broker IG, the DAX 40 futures contract fell by 0.1%, while the FTSE 100 futures contract lost 0.4%, around 7:40am. Backed by Netflix and the technology sector the day after Donald Trump announced a major investment project in artificial intelligence, the New York Stock Exchange closed higher on Wednesday for the third session in a row. The Dow Jones Index (DJIA) gained 0.3%, to 44,156.73 points, and the S&P 500 gained 0.6%, to 6,086.37 points. The expanded index finished less than 4 points from the all-time high of 6,090.27 points set at the beginning of December. The Nasdaq Composite, rich in technological stocks, gained 1.3% to 20,009.34 points.
Technology stocks stood out on Wednesday as several big names in the sector, including Oracle (+6.8%), committed to investing up to 500 billion dollars over the next four years in infrastructures dedicated to artificial intelligence in the United States

After achieving a flawless performance at the end of 2024, the streaming giant Netflix (+9.7%) was also very surrounded. Analysts were surprised by the influx of new subscribers, almost twice as high as expected with a net gain of 18.9 million paying users in the fourth quarter

The main Asian stock indices are supported by the Chinese government's desire to strengthen its support for the country's equity market. Insurers owned by the Chinese state will be encouraged to inject capital into the market. Around 50 billion yuan (6.59 billion euros) will be invested through a pilot program before the Lunar New Year holidays next week.
While the Nikkei 225 closed up 0.8% on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, the Shanghai Composite rose 0.7% at the end of the session and the Hang Seng fell by 0.3% on the Hong Kong Stock

The 10-year U.S. Treasury bond yield fell about 1 basis point, to 4.61%, around 7:40. That of the two-year stock was unchanged at 4.30%

The euro was almost stable, at 1.0408 dollars, around 7:40am. The greenback traded little against the Japanese currency, at 156.54

The March contract for North Sea Brent traded in London dropped 35 cents, or 0.4%, to 78.65 dollars per barrel, at 78.65 dollars per barrel, around 7:40am. The contract of the same maturity on light sweet crude (WTI) listed on Nymex sold 36 cents, or 0.5%, to 75.08