BRUSSELS (dpa-AFX) - The French stock market is down firmly in negative territory on Monday with shares from across several sectors sliding down sharply on selling pressure amid rising tensions in the Middle East.
Tensions run high in the Middle East following the U.S. and Israel's coordinated strikes on Iran and the retaliatory strikes by Teheran on U.S. bases across the region.
Also, inflation worries have resurfaced as Brent crude prices soared over 10% to their highest level since January 2025 on fears of supply disruptions from the Middle East.
Shares from banking, luxury and automobile sectors are among the major losers, while defense stocks are finding good support.
The benchmark CAC 40, which dropped to 8,390.09, losing about 2.2% earlier in the session, was down 140.40 points or 1.63% at 8,440.38 a few minutes before noon.
Except TotalEnergies (up 4.3%), Thales (up 3.6%) and Eurofins Scientific (up marginally), all other stocks from the CAC 40 index are down in negative territory.
Accor, down 8.6%, is the biggest loser. Stellantis, Kering, Renault, LVMH, Societe Generale, Saint Gobain, BNP Paribas, Hermes International and Michelin are down 3%-5%.
Schneider Electric, Legrand, Credit Agricole, L'Oreal, Engine, Vinci, Unibail Rodamco, STMicroelectronics, Veolia Environment, EssilorLuxottica, Bouygues and Capgemini are lower by 1.5%-3%.
In economic news, data from S&P Global showed France's HCOB Manufacturing PMI slipped to 50.1 in February from January's 51.2, revising higher from initial estimates of 49.9, signaling broad stagnation in the sector.
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