The Paris Bourse is expected to trade narrowly higher on Monday, at the start of a week marked by the ECB meeting, the publication of several key economic indicators and the kick-off of the US corporate earnings season.

At around 8:15 a.m., the 'future' contract on the CAC 40 index - end-of-month delivery - is trading at 8092.5 points, up 22 points, heralding a stable or even very slightly higher opening.

After a strong start to the year and new all-time highs, the Paris market has lost momentum since the end of March in the absence of any impetus likely to sustain the upward movement.

A number of catalysts are on the horizon this week, but the prospect of these important meetings could prompt investors to adopt a cautious approach for the time being.

In the eurozone, the European Central Bank (ECB) meeting - scheduled for Thursday - will represent the week's main event, with the hope that it will confirm the scenario of a first rate cut in June.

The market is hoping to get some answers, but some analysts point out that evidence of a decline in inflation may not be available before the end of the summer, which could push the ECB to wait until the third quarter before acting on its rates.

However, it is the US inflation statistics, expected on Wednesday, that will be the highlight of the stock market week, as many uncertainties still hang over the trajectory of prices across the Atlantic.

We are (...) still far from a scenario that confirms that the battle against high inflation has been completely won, hence the rise in yields on the bond market, which is weighing a little on the momentum of equities, and also questions about the possibility of a rate cut by the US Federal Reserve in June," points out Christopher Dembik, investment strategy advisor at Pictet AM.

For many observers, long rates are likely to continue hovering around their current highs, limiting the upside potential of equity markets until the first rate cuts are announced.

In terms of European indicators, German industrial production figures, expected this morning, will reveal whether the manufacturing sector of Europe's leading economy is on the way out of its rut.

Investors' attention will also turn, from the weekend onwards, to the quarterly accounts of US companies.

Banking groups JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and Citi will kick off the earnings season on Friday.

According to FactSet data, first-quarter earnings for S&P 500 companies are expected to rise by 3.2% year-on-year, marking their third consecutive quarter of growth.

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