After two sessions of progress thanks to the respite between the United States and the European Union on the customs front, European stock exchanges should open slightly lower on Wednesday.

The industrial gas specialist Air Liquide for its part announced the acquisition of the companies IntensivLeben and AP-Sachsen. The financial terms of these transactions, which are intended to strengthen its home health business in Germany, were not disclosed.
Soitec published lower annual results on Tuesday evening and said it expected a further drop in its turnover for the current quarter. The manufacturer of advanced materials for the semiconductor industry also announced the appointment of Albin Jacquemont as CFO, effective immediately

On Wednesday, Carrefour is meeting its shareholders for its annual general meeting.
Derichebourg announced a current EBITDA and an increase in net income for the first half of its fiscal year 2024-2025, despite a complicated international context for its customers. On the other hand, the turnover of the metal recycling specialist fell slightly.

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

While investors remain attentive to the evolution of the trade war and await the quarterly publication of artificial intelligence (AI) processor giant Nvidia, European equity markets could give some ground on Wednesday at the start of trading. At around 7:40am, the DAX 40 futures contract in Frankfurt lost 0.2%, while the FTSE 100 in London was stable, according to data from

The New York Stock Exchange ended sharply higher on Tuesday, thanks to a pause in the trade war and the easing of bond market rates. The Dow Jones index gained 1.8% to 42,343.65 points, and the S&P 500 gained 2.1% to 5,921.54 points. The Nasdaq Composite, rich in technological stocks, gained 2.5% to 19,199.16 points.
Sucden Financial indicated that Donald Trump's recent decision to postpone customs surcharges on products imported from the European Union leaves more time for negotiations. For the financial intermediary, this delay helped allay fears of short-term escalation and supported global risk appetite.

Supported by the hope of a customs compromise between the United States and China, the market also welcomed on Tuesday a rebound in American household confidence in May. The Conference Board's confidence index was 98, up from 85.7 in April.
In Asia, the Nikkei index on the Tokyo Stock Exchange gained 0.3% on Wednesday at the end of trading. The Shanghai Composite Index rose by 0.2%, while the Hang Seng of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange dropped

After a sale of new two-year bonds prompted slightly firmer demand, US Treasury yields fell on Tuesday. The deal, which will be followed by five- and seven-year bond issues later this week, was the first benchmark American debt auction since Moody's downgraded its federal credit rating on May 16.
The two-year stock rate rose by 3 basis points to 3.98%. Around 7:40am on Wednesday, the 10-year US Treasury bond rate rose 2.8 basis points to 4.48%.

The greenback gained 0.1% against the Japanese currency, at 144.53 yen. Around 7:40 a.m., the euro lost 0.3% to 1.1298 dollars.

Buoyed by the prospect of new American sanctions against Russia, which could affect black gold supplies, oil prices are rising. Donald Trump again expressed his irritation with Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, saying that the Russian president was “playing with fire” while peace talks with Ukraine have stalled. He indicated over the weekend that he was considering sanctions against Moscow, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter, who said sanctions could come as early as this

The July contract for soft light crude (WTI) listed on Nymex rose by 26 cents, or 0.4%, to $61.15 per barrel. Around 7:40 a.m., the London-listed North Sea Brent contract with the same maturity gained 27 cents, or 0.4%, to 64.36