France Stock Market Today, 24 November 2025: CAC 40 Reclaims 8,000 as Banks Rally and Defence Stocks Retreat

Paris equities started the last week of November on a positive note on Monday, 24 November 2025. The French stock market tracked a Europe‑wide rebound fuelled by hopes of a near‑term U.S. Federal Reserve rate cut, while peace‑talk headlines around Ukraine pressured defence names and left the tape mixed beneath the surface. ^[1]

By mid‑session, Euronext Paris data showed the CAC 40 back above the 8,000‑point mark, up around 0.3% on the day, with broader indices such as the SBF 120 and CAC Small also in the green. ^[2]

Market snapshot: French indices edge higher

According to Euronext’s live market board, the main French indices were modestly higher on Monday afternoon: ^[3]

CAC 40: 8,003.38 points, +0.26%
CAC All Shares: 9,392.65 points, +0.42%
SBF 120: 6,045.38 points, +0.34%
CAC Next 20: 11,580.21 points, +1.02%
CAC Small: 15,509.00 points, +0.98%

Real‑time data from Investing.com showed the CAC 40 trading around 7,999 points, up roughly 0.2%, after an opening spike above 8,030 and an intraday range between about 7,959 and 8,033. Daily volume was running below the three‑month average, underlining the relatively calm tone after a volatile November for European equities. ^[4]

The index remains comfortably above its 52‑week low near 6,764 and within sight of its recent record around 8,314, keeping France among the better‑performing major markets in Europe this year. ^[5]

Top movers in Paris: tech and autos up, defence under pressure

Intraday data from the Paris market showed a classic “risk‑on but selective” session: cyclical and interest‑rate‑sensitive stocks advanced, while defence, some consumer staples and parts of energy lagged. ^[6]

CAC 40 winners

A midday snapshot indicated that: ^[7]

Capgemini was among the strongest performers, as investors rotated back into IT and digital‑transformation names after recent tech‑sector turbulence.
Stellantis and Renault gained ground, helped by the broader recovery in European autos.
ArcelorMittal and industrial names such as Saint‑Gobain and Bouygues traded higher, reflecting cautious optimism on European growth.
Financials including Société Générale, BNP Paribas and Crédit Agricole posted moderate gains, supported by higher bond yields earlier in the year and fresh capital‑return news (see below).
Utilities and infrastructure groups such as Veolia Environnement and Vinci also saw buying interest.

CAC 40 laggards

On the downside, defence and aerospace stocks were notable underperformers: ^[8]

Thales and Safran fell, alongside Airbus, as traders reacted to headlines suggesting progress on a new peace proposal for the Russia–Ukraine conflict – a scenario that could imply slower growth in defence budgets over time.
Luxury and healthcare heavyweights including Hermès, Kering, Sanofi and Danone traded lower, partly on profit‑taking after strong multi‑year runs.
TotalEnergies and Carrefour also slipped, even as oil prices stabilized modestly higher on the day. ^[9]

The result was a narrow advance at the index level: gains in banks, autos, tech and industrials offset broad‑based weakness across defence and some blue‑chip staples. TechStock²

Global backdrop: Fed rate‑cut hopes and Ukraine peace talks

The French market’s tone closely followed the broader European move higher. By early European trading, Germany’s DAX was up around 0.7%, the CAC 40 about 0.6%, and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 roughly 0.4%, according to Investing.com. ^[10]

Two macro themes dominated sentiment:

Renewed optimism on a U.S. Federal Reserve rate cut
- Comments from New York Fed President John Williams late last week, suggesting U.S. interest rates could fall “in the near term”, have pushed markets to price roughly a 70% chance of a quarter‑point cut at the Fed’s December 9–10 meeting. ^[11]
- Lower U.S. rate expectations have helped global equities recover from a tech‑driven sell‑off earlier in November, with investors rotating from highly valued AI stocks into more traditional cyclicals and value names. ^[12]
Tentative progress on a Ukraine peace plan
- U.S. and Ukrainian officials indicated over the weekend that discussions on a revised peace proposal had made progress, spurring hopes—still fragile—of eventual de‑escalation. ^[13]
- That prospect weighed on European defence stocks, where an index of aerospace and defence names fell around 2–3%, with companies such as Thales in Paris cited among the laggards. TechStock²+1

For Paris, the combination of rate‑cut hopes (positive for banks and cyclicals) and peace headlines (negative for defence) created the cross‑currents that defined Monday’s session. TechStock²+1

Big corporate stories in French stocks today

Beyond index‑level moves, a series of high‑profile corporate announcements shaped trading on Euronext Paris on 24 November.

BNP Paribas: €1.15 billion share buyback launches

BNP Paribas, a heavyweight in the CAC 40 and European banking sector, kicked off a new €1.15 billion share buyback programme tied to its 2025 financial‑year results after receiving approval from the European Central Bank. ^[14]

Key points from the bank’s press release:

The programme targets BNP Paribas shares listed on Euronext Paris (ISIN FR0000131104). ^[15]
As of May 9, 2025, the group held about 0.06% of its own shares; the description allows for the potential repurchase of up to 112.36 million shares, or roughly 9.94% of share capital, depending on market conditions. ^[16]
Management frames the buyback as part of a broader capital‑return strategy, aiming to optimise the bank’s Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio while supporting earnings per share. TechStock²+1

With European bank shares leading the region’s advance on Monday, the fresh buyback news added a tailwind for BNP Paribas’ stock and for French financials more broadly. TechStock²+1

STMicroelectronics: ongoing buybacks and new technology

Semiconductor group STMicroelectronics, listed in Paris and Amsterdam, reported new progress in its common share repurchase programme: ^[17]

Between 17 and 21 November, ST bought 645,149 shares on Euronext Paris at a weighted average price of €19.29, for a total outlay of about €12.44 million.
Following these transactions, the company holds 22.33 million treasury shares, equivalent to around 2.5% of issued share capital. ^[18]

In a separate release also dated 24 November, STMicroelectronics introduced a new GaN (gallium nitride) power‑IC platform for motion control, aimed at boosting energy efficiency in appliances and industrial motors—an area of sustained structural demand. ^[19]

Together, buybacks and innovation news helped keep STMicroelectronics among the more resilient tech names on the French market in a year dominated by semiconductor and AI themes. ^[20]

OVHcloud and LCH SA: strategic cloud agreement

French cloud specialist OVHcloud announced that it has signed a cloud‑hosting agreement with LCH SA, the Paris‑based clearing house of the London Stock Exchange Group. ^[21]

OVHcloud will host a selection of LCH SA’s services in a SecNumCloud‑qualified environment, a French cybersecurity certification that ensures high levels of data security and regulatory compliance. ^[22]
The deal is positioned as a key step in LCH SA’s digital transformation, enhancing resilience, security and scalability for critical market‑infrastructure services.

The announcement reinforces France’s positioning in “sovereign cloud” and financial‑market infrastructure, and comes on top of OVHcloud’s own recently announced share‑buyback programme and expansion in Germany earlier in November. ^[23]

Casino Group: “Renouveau 2030” and balance‑sheet overhaul

Struggling retailer Casino Group used the Euronext Paris newswire early Monday to give a detailed update on its “Renouveau 2030” strategic plan and a project to strengthen its financial structure. ^[24]

Highlights include: ^[25]

A planned equity injection of around €300 million, potentially guaranteed by majority shareholder France Retail Holdings (FRH), subject to satisfactory negotiations with creditors.
A target to reduce net leverage to below 1.7x by 2029, cut the nominal amount of its Term Loan B to €800 million, and lower the average cost of debt.
2030 financial objectives such as €15.8 billion in gross sales, adjusted EBITDA after rent of €644 million, cumulative net capex of €1.7 billion from 2025–2030, and free cash flow of €286 million.

The group is meeting creditors today to present the plan and its balance‑sheet objectives. The update is critical for Casino’s heavily indebted equity story and could influence sentiment toward France’s broader retail and high‑yield credit complex. ^[26]

Waga Energy: EQT’s mandatory tender offer opens

On the energy‑transition front, Waga Energy, a specialist in upgrading landfill gas to biomethane and listed on Euronext Paris, entered a new phase in its takeover saga.

A mandatory simplified cash tender offer by EQT‑backed Box BidCo for Waga Energy’s shares officially opened on Monday morning, according to Euronext’s company‑news feed and a detailed offer document distributed via EQS/TradingView. ^[27]

The offer, launched after EQT secured a controlling stake, gives remaining minority shareholders the opportunity to exit into a larger industrial and financial platform. The deal underscores continued M&A interest in French renewable‑gas and climate‑tech assets despite market volatility. ^[28]

Havas: weekly update on €50 million buyback

Advertising and communications group Havas N.V. reported that it repurchased 52,542 shares between 17 and 21 November at an average price of €7.89 as part of its ongoing €50 million share buyback programme. ^[29]

Havas now stands at more than 14.3 million shares repurchased since the programme began, with management emphasizing the move as a way to enhance shareholder value at what it views as an undemanding valuation (a P/E around 8.5x, according to the update). ^[30]

Other Euronext Paris headlines

Euronext’s own company news stream for Paris featured a string of additional updates on 24 November, including: ^[31]

Multiple share buyback transaction reports (for example, Fleury Michon and HighCo) and disclosures of voting‑rights totals for October.
OVHcloud and LCH SA’s cloud agreement and STMicroelectronics’ buyback status (covered above).
A reminder that Facephi is presenting at the Deutsches Eigenkapitalforum (Nov 24–25), highlighting ongoing cross‑border investor‑relations activity among smaller tech names.

Euronext’s structural story: ATHEX integration and defence‑sector hub

Beyond daily price moves, 24 November 2025 is structurally significant for Euronext and, by extension, for the Paris market.

Settlement of the ATHEX share exchange

Following the successful voluntary share exchange tender offer announced on 19 November, Euronext today proceeds with the settlement of ATHEX shares tendered by shareholders of the Athens Stock Exchange’s parent company. ^[32]

New Euronext “consideration shares” are being delivered and admitted to trading across Euronext Amsterdam, Brussels, Lisbon and Paris. ^[33]
The transaction gives Euronext a majority stake (around 74% of voting rights) in ATHEX and further consolidates its role as Europe’s leading multi‑country stock‑exchange group. ^[34]

For French investors, this deepens Paris’s position as a gateway into south‑eastern European equities and expands the pool of companies accessible via Euronext’s trading and post‑trade infrastructure. TechStock²+1

Launch of the European Aerospace and Defence Growth Hub

In a separate press release dated 24 November, Euronext unveiled its European Aerospace and Defence Growth Hub, a new initiative aimed at mid‑sized private companies in the defence and aerospace value chain. ^[35]

According to Euronext:

The hub initially brings together 15 private companies from France, Hungary, Italy and the Netherlands, under the umbrella of ELITE, Euronext’s ecosystem for private firms.
Participants will receive executive training, help with cross‑border collaboration, and improved access to financing tools, with the goal of strengthening Europe’s defence‑industrial base. TechStock²+1

The timing is striking: defence stocks are falling today on peace‑talk optimism, even as Euronext doubles down on long‑term defence and strategic‑autonomy themes—potentially creating opportunities for investors who can look beyond near‑term volatility. TechStock²+1

What today’s session means for French equity investors

Putting it all together, Monday’s action on the French stock market highlights a few key themes for investors:

Rotation, not reversal
The CAC 40’s move back above 8,000, with outperformance in banks, autos and selected tech, suggests a sector rotation rather than a wholesale change in the market’s direction. Money is moving out of crowded defence and high‑multiple names toward value and financials, helped by the prospect of U.S. rate cuts and a calmer macro backdrop. TechStock²+1
Buybacks as a powerful support
Major programmes at BNP Paribas, STMicroelectronics, Havas, Heineken (in Amsterdam) and even Euronext itself point to a broad European capital‑return wave that can support earnings per share and downside protection for established names—an important cushion if growth expectations wobble. TechStock²+2GlobeNewswire+2
Structural integration of European markets
The ATHEX integration and new defence hub show Euronext continuing to build a single liquidity pool across the continent. For investors in Paris, this means ever‑greater access to diversified listings and strategic themes (energy security, defence, digital sovereignty) through a familiar market infrastructure. TechStock²+2Euronext Live+2
Idiosyncratic risk remains high in leveraged and restructuring stories
Casino’s ambitious Renouveau 2030 plan and the need for fresh equity underline the risks and potential rewards in heavily leveraged French names. Thorough balance‑sheet analysis remains essential in this part of the market. ^[36]

As always, today’s moves are not a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Investors should consider their own objectives, risk tolerance and time horizon, and may want to watch how Fed policy, Ukraine‑related headlines and ongoing buyback activity continue to feed into French market pricing over the coming weeks.

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