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French Stocks Close Lower as CAC 40 Index Drops 2.18%
Summary
French stock markets ended lower on Wednesday, with the benchmark CAC 40 index falling by 2.18%. The decline was reportedly led by losses in the Basic Materials, Industrials, and Consumer Goods sectors.
French stocks registered significant losses at the close of trading on Wednesday. The country's benchmark index, the CAC 40, fell by 2.18%, while the broader SBF 120 index declined by 2.12%. The downturn was reportedly driven by poor performance in the Basic Materials, Industrials, and Consumer Goods sectors.
Among the session's worst performers on the CAC 40 was automaker Stellantis NV, which saw its shares fall by 5.85% to a five-year low. Other notable decliners included financial services company Societe Generale SA, down 5.79%, and luxury group Kering SA, which dropped 4.98%.
Despite the broad market decline, a few companies posted gains. Energy firm TotalEnergies SE was the top performer on the CAC 40, rising 2.32%. STMicroelectronics NV and Legrand SA also finished in positive territory, with modest gains of 0.33% and 0.28%, respectively.
AdThe negative sentiment was widespread on the Paris Stock Exchange, where falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones by a margin of 320 to 135, with 82 stocks ending unchanged. Meanwhile, the CAC 40 VIX, which measures implied volatility, was unchanged but remained at a 52-week high of 18.96.