by Patrick Vignal

PARIS (Reuters) – The main European stock markets fell on Friday after a hesitant opening, penalized by the questions of investors in the face of the announcements made the day before by the Federal Reserve and by the rise of the single currency which weighs on export stocks.

In Paris, the CAC 40 index lost 0.73% to 4,979.17 points around 08:40 GMT. In Frankfurt, the Dax lost 0.8% and in London, the FTSE lost 0.19%.

The euro zone's EuroStoxx 50 index fell 0.8%, the FTSEurofirst 300 0.45% and the Stoxx 600 0.79%.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei index turned down to finish down 1.4% after reports announcing the probable resignation of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for health reasons.

European stock markets ended in the red on Thursday and Wall Street ended in scattered order after the announcements of the American central bank, which chose to be more flexible on inflation in order to be able to focus on employment.

The new strategy unveiled by the Fed after two years of study and debate provides for an inflation target of 2% on average over time, if necessary by allowing rising prices to slip away for "some time" to compensate for periods of below-target inflation.

This announcement is rather favorable to risky assets but it was expected and the lack of optimism of investors can be explained by what the Fed did not say, according to Jack Janasiewicz, portfolio manager at Natixis Investment Managers.

"No new specific tools have been announced, which leaves open the debate on the constraints of monetary policy, as we approach the zero floor", he comments. "The Fed can continue to try to do everything on its side, but we have to hand over to the fiscal side to stimulate growth."

The campaign for the US presidential election in November remains in the background, Donald Trump having formally accepted his nomination as the candidate of the Republican Party on Thursday by attacking his Democratic rival Joe Biden, declaring that a victory for him would have the effect of exacerbating racial tensions and the health crisis shaking the United States.

VALUES IN EUROPE

Most of the European sector indices fell with a marked decline for the technology sector (-1.3%).

Banks stand out, their Stoxx index rising 0.93% on the back of rising bond yields in the wake of Fed announcements.

In values, Bayer loses 2.97% after acknowledging that there were "obstacles" in the implementation of the agreement of 11 billion dollars concluded in the United States to put an end to the procedures launched against its herbicide Roundup .

ADP, very affected by the coronavirus crisis, yields 1.51% after a lowering of recommendation by Deutsche Bank, passed to "keep" on the value.

AT WALL STREET

The S&P-500 and the Dow Jones ended in the green on Thursday on Wall Street but the Nasdaq ended down after posting a session record.

The Dow Jones index gained 160.35 points (+0.57%) to 28,492.27 points.

The broader S&P-500 rose 0.17% to 3,484.55 points, ending the day at a record high for the fifth consecutive session.

The Nasdaq Composite fell for its part by 39.72 points (-0.34%) to 11,625.34 points. This tech-heavy index once again hit an all-time high during the session at 11,730.014 before reversing its gains.

Futures are currently signaling an open with no clear trend, but the trend could change with the release one hour before the opening of the "core PCE" index in the United States, the inflation measure favored by the Fed. (12:30 GMT).

RATE

The yield on 10-year US government bonds took two basis points to 0.764%.

In the first exchanges in Europe, the Bund of the same maturity, reference rate for the euro zone, followed the movement to go up to -0.39%.

CHANGES

On the other hand, the dollar fell against a basket of reference currencies including the euro, which rose to 1.19 dollars (+0.6%).

The yen is playing its role as a safe haven pending the probable resignation of Shinzo Abe, rising 0.5% against the dollar.

OIL

Oil prices fell again after climbing with the passage of Hurricane Laura over Texas and Louisiana, which shut down almost all refining capacity in this major region for the sector.

Brent fell 0.42% to 44.90 dollars a barrel and US light crude (West Texas Intermediate, WTI) lost 0.44% to 42.83 dollars.