The Paris Bourse is set to open slightly higher on Tuesday, as it begins a session packed with economic indicators, starting with the latest inflation figures for the eurozone.

At around 8:15 a.m., the future contract on the CAC 40 index - for delivery at the end of May - gained 12.5 points, heralding a favorable but cautious start to the session.

Despite the good form of Wall Street, which yesterday extended the sharp rebound begun on Friday, the Paris market had slipped into negative territory on Monday, ending the session on a modest 0.3% decline to 8065 points.

In New York, however, investors were keen to continue their purchases and start the week with an assumed capital of confidence, despite the uncertainties surrounding the tone of the Fed's statement to be released tomorrow evening.

No rate changes are expected on this occasion, but market participants will be dissecting the language to be distilled by Fed Chairman Jerome Powell at his press conference, in the hope of gaining some insight into the evolution of the central bank's monetary policy.

Recent weeks have been clearly marked by a spectacular downward revision of US rate cut expectations for 2024, from seven to potentially zero.

While awaiting the Fed's verdict, traders will be paying close attention, at 11:00 am, to the first GDP figures for the eurozone in the first quarter, which should show a timid rebound in growth to +0.1% over the first three months of the year, compared with a contraction of 0.1% in the fourth quarter.

But the big event of the day will be the announcement, also at 11:00 a.m., of the first estimate of inflation in the euro zone for April.

Economists are expecting a slowdown in core inflation, to 2.6% year-on-year, which would play into the hands of an interest rate cut in June.

"The ECB has already decided on a rate cut in June", say Oddo BHF economists. The forthcoming price and wage figures will determine the pace of subsequent cuts", they add.

The session will also be marked by a new salvo of quarterly results, including those of Air France-KLM, adidas, Capgemini, Clariant, Mercedes-Benz Group and Volkswagen.

In the USA, several major listed companies, including 3M, Coca-Cola, Eli Lilly and McDonald's, are also due to publish their first-quarter accounts.

The easing in the bond market continues to work in favor of equities, with the yield on 10-year Treasuries down 5.5 basis points to 6.61%.

Despite today's busy calendar, initiatives could remain limited on the eve of the May 1st bank holiday, which will see the main continental European stock markets remain closed tomorrow.

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