CAC 40 In Tight Range In Cautious Trade

(RTTNews) - French stocks turned in a mixed performance in largely cautious moves by investors on Monday as higher oil prices amid lingering worries about Middle East tensions outweighed optimism about the Federal Reserve holding interest rates following recent soft data from the world's largest economy.

Weak Chinese economic data also contributed to the cautious mood. Chinese consumer spending stalled in July, urban investment contracted at a faster pace and unemployment ticked higher, adding to pressure on Beijing to step up policy response in the second half of the year.

Brent crude futures rose to $89.47 a barrel, gaining nearly 1.1% over previous close.

The benchmark CAC 40 was down 7.41 points or 0.09% at 8629.39 about half an hour past noon.

Saint-Gobain and Kering shed 2% and 1.9%, respectively. Eurofins Scientific, Danone, L'Oreal and Dassault Systemes lost 1%-1.6%.

Hermes International, Thales, Capgemini, LVMH, EssilorLuxottica, Orange, Publicis Groupe, Carrefour, Unibail Rodamco, Credit Agricole, Eiffage and BNP Paribas declined by 0.5%-0.9%.

STMicroelectronics jumped 4.2%. Euronext, Stellantis, Schneider Electric, Sanofi, Legrand and Safran gained 0.4%-1%.