French Stocks Close Lower as Stellantis Hits 5-Year Low

France's benchmark stock index closed lower on Thursday, weighed down by losses in the technology, healthcare, and industrial sectors. According to closing data from the Paris Stock Exchange, the CAC 40 fell 0.52%, while the broader SBF 120 index declined 0.58%.

Session in Review

Market sentiment was broadly negative, with falling stocks significantly outnumbering advancing ones by a margin of 310 to 157, while 81 issues ended the session unchanged. The session's downturn reflected widespread selling pressure across several key European sectors.

Despite the day's decline, a measure of market volatility, the CAC 40 VIX, was unchanged at 18.96. However, the source noted that this level represents a new 52-week high, suggesting underlying investor anxiety remains elevated.

Notable Stock Movements

The worst performers on the CAC 40 were led by automaker Stellantis NV (EPA:STLAM), which saw its shares fall 4.14% to a five-year low. Other significant decliners included:

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• EssilorLuxottica SA (EPA:ESLX), which dropped 3.50%.
• Societe Generale SA (EPA:SOGN), down 3.29%.

Bucking the downward trend, energy major TotalEnergies SE (EPA:TTEF) gained 1.80%, with its shares reaching an all-time high. Other top performers included Eurofins Scientific SE (EPA:EUFI), which rose 2.05%, and insurer AXA SA (EPA:AXAF), which added 1.76%.

Commodities and Currencies

In the commodities market, energy prices surged, providing a tailwind for stocks like TotalEnergies. Crude oil futures for November delivery rose 4.86% to $96.64 a barrel, while the November Brent oil contract climbed 4.83% to $108.06 a barrel. In contrast, Gold Futures for December delivery were down 0.60%.

Currency markets were relatively stable, with the EUR/USD and EUR/GBP pairs showing little change. The US Dollar Index Futures, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies, ticked up 0.21%.