Paris-listed stocks finished the trading day lower on Friday as sector-specific selling weighed across the market. The CAC 40 fell 0.65% to finish at a new three-month low, while the SBF 120 retreated 0.69% by the close in Paris.
Sectors registering the heaviest pressure included Basic Materials, Healthcare and Technology, driving much of the downward move in the indices.
Winners and losers
Among CAC 40 constituents, Thales (EPA:TCFP) was the session's best performer, climbing 2.07% - a gain of 4.90 points - to close at 241.30. TotalEnergies SE (EPA:TTEF) also outperformed the benchmark, adding 1.84% or 1.23 points to finish at 68.00. Euronext (EPA:ENX) rose 1.06%, gaining 1.50 points to end the day at 142.40.
At the other end of the CAC 40, STMicroelectronics NV (EPA:STMPA) recorded the steepest decline, slipping 5.07% - down 1.45 points - to close at 27.15. ArcelorMittal SA (AS:MT) fell 2.86% or 1.41 points to end at 47.90. Compagnie de Saint Gobain SA (EPA:SGOB) lost 2.45% - a drop of 1.86 points - to finish at 74.06.
Within the SBF 120, Dassault Aviation SA (EPA:AM) led gains, advancing 5.77% to close at 333.80. Sopra Steria Group SA (EPA:SOPR) rose 3.86% to settle at 137.30, and Ipsos (EPA:ISOS) added 3.13% to end the session at 36.92.
The SBF 120's weakest performers included Arkema SA (EPA:AKE), which dropped 5.72% to finish at 52.75. STMicroelectronics NV (EPA:STMPA) also featured among the largest decliners on the SBF 120, losing 5.07% to settle at 27.15, while Atos SE (EPA:ATOS) fell 4.98% to close at 37.88.
Market breadth and technical notes
Declining issues outnumbered advancers on the Paris exchange by 318 to 161, with 82 stocks finishing unchanged. Shares of Compagnie de Saint Gobain SA (EPA:SGOB) reached 52-week lows, closing down 2.45% at 74.06.
The CAC 40 VIX, the measure of implied volatility tied to CAC 40 options, was unchanged on the day at 18.96 - a new 52-week high.
Commodities and currency moves
Commodities posted notable moves in parallel with equity weakness. Gold futures for April delivery rose 1.24%, gaining 62.96 to trade at 5,141.66 a troy ounce. In crude markets, April delivery for U.S. crude climbed 11.10% - an increase of 8.99 - to reach 90.00 a barrel. The May Brent contract rose 8.20%, up 7.00 to 92.41 a barrel.
Currency markets were relatively subdued. The euro was essentially flat versus the dollar, with EUR/USD unchanged by 0.03% at 1.16. EUR/GBP was unchanged by 0.37% to 0.87. The U.S. Dollar Index Futures eased 0.38% to 98.93.
This session left Paris benchmarks lower overall, with a handful of industrial and energy names outperforming while technology and basic materials came under pressure. Volatility measures sat at year highs even as the euro-dollar cross showed little movement.