PARIS – European markets showed a mixed picture on Monday, with the pan-European Stoxx 600 largely flat, but French assets coming under immediate pressure following the shock resignation of Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu.
Lecornu stepped down just weeks after his appointment, plunging France into fresh political chaos and following the prior collapse of François Bayrou’s government.
The nation’s benchmark CAC 40 index fell around 1.4% in reaction to the news, successfully paring some of its steeper earlier losses. The losses were led by the financial sector, with French banking heavyweights Societe Generale, BNP Paribas, and Credit Agricole all trading down by more than 3%.
The turmoil also affected France’s sovereign debt and currency. The yield on France’s benchmark 10-year bond was last seen at 3.5719%, having previously risen to a 10-day high of 3.5990%. The euro slipped to $1.1697, marking a roughly 0.4% decline for the session against the dollar.
Broader European Movers
Outside of the French drama, the broader pan-European Stoxx 600 index was little changed around 3 p.m. London time. The index was taking a pause after five consecutive days of positive returns last week, including hitting an all-time high during Thursday’s session.
Individual corporate movements included:
- Aston Martin shares plunged around 8% after the luxury carmaker issued a profit warning, citing continued tariff pressures.
- French automaker Renault fell almost 2% following reports that the company plans to cut 3,000 jobs across its finance, marketing, and HR departments.
- Meanwhile, multinational automaker Stellantis saw its share price advance almost 2% amid reports that it is set to invest about $10 billion in the U.S., including new manufacturing plants in Illinois and Michigan.
- Avanza Bank Holding was a top gainer, adding about 4% after the Swedish online bank reported its customer base has grown by more than 132,000 this year.
In the U.S., Wall Street notched gains on Monday despite the continuing government shutdown, with investors appearing to shrug off concerns about the delayed release of key economic data, including the September jobs report.
