The "3 Witches" session in May ended with a shower of absolute records: the CAC40 'GR' (Global Return) climbed +0.8% to 22,400, erasing its previous high of 22,345 set on April 20 (another "3 Witches" session).
Absolute record (also set on April 20) equalled by the Euro-Stoxx50 at 4,407, record broken by the DAX40 at 16,295 (vs. 16,285 on January 5, 2022).

The kick-off to this wave of records was given this morning by Tokyo, with the Nikkei (+0.7% to 30,808, i.e. +5% weekly) recording its best mark (30,900 intraday) for... 33 years. 33 years.

US indices were not left behind, with the S&P500 (at 4,210) and Nasdaq (at 12,730) gaining around 0.3%.

The New York Stock Exchange remains buoyed by hopes of a transparent agreement in Washington to raise the US debt ceiling.

'In a statement released Thursday, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy gave an optimistic view, saying he saw "the path we can take to reach an agreement",' Wells Fargo pointed out.

Moreover, he even said that he expected the House of Representatives to consider a deal next week, with an 'agreement in principle' possible this weekend", added Deutsche Bank this morning.

On this side of the Atlantic, the news is particularly sparse in this so-called "three witches" session, as the day after Ascension Thursday is not expected to see any major corporate releases: investors therefore remain motivated by the hope of seeing the US escape the "lockdown".

The only statistic of note in Europe was Germany's industrial producer price index, which rose by 4.1% year-on-year in April, marking a marked slowdown on the 6.7% increase recorded in March.
The bond markets, which had deteriorated sharply on Thursday, are finding it hard to reverse the trend: our OATs are up +6pts to 3.07%, Bunds +8pts to 2.493%, Italian BTPs +3pts to 4.338%... and T-Bonds +7pts to 3.727%, while the hypothesis of an 11 rate hike to 5.25/5.50% is now supported by 40% of the vote.
The Dollar's rise stalls against the Euro in the 1.0750 zone, with the Euro recovering 0.2% to $1.0790.
The rise in rates continues to harm precious metals: the ounce of Gold falls back -1.2%, below $1.960, while silver dips to $23.5 (-0.5%).

Brent crude oil rebounds +0.7% to $76.5 in London, while the price of gas (Megawatt/hour equivalent) falls back below $30, the lowest since April 2021.


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