CAC 40 Edges Lower As Banks Fall On Disappointing Earnings
(RTTNews) - French stocks declined on Thursday, with banks and automakers retreating on disappointing earnings.
Investors were also reacting to the latest HCOB PMI survey data indicating a deterioration in France's manufacturing sector at the start of the third quarter.
The benchmark CAC 40 was down 97 points, or 1.3 percent, at 7,434 after rising 0.8 percent on Wednesday.
Lender Societe Generale plummeted almost 8 percent after cutting the outlook for its French retail activities. Peer BNP Paribas dropped 2.2 percent. Credit Agricole dropped 1.2 percent after posting a decline in Q2 profit.
Automaker Renault fell 2.4 percent after German rivals Volkswagen and BMW reported disappointing earnings results.
Technip Energies, an engineering firm for the energy and chemicals industries, tumbled 3.3 percent despite reporting a rise in its first-half net profit and revenue.
Veolia Environnement fell more than 3 percent. The environmental-services giant backed its FY outlook for reporting a 10 percent increase in first-half earnings.