French stocks experienced a slight increase on Tuesday, following the release of a survey indicating an improvement in the country's manufacturing activity for March. Despite the manufacturing sector facing another month of shrinkage, business sentiment remained optimistic. This uplifting news came from the recent HCOB PMI data.
After a prolonged holiday weekend, the trading scene resumed, with the reference CAC 40 Index gaining by 0.3 percent, standing at 8,227. Biopharmaceutical firms Ipsen and Sutro Biopharma saw negligible changes in their shares even though they have recently announced a worldwide exclusive licensing agreement for STRO-003, which is an antibody drug conjugate nearing the completion of its pre-clinical development stages.
Societe Generale, a French financial services provider, experienced a 0.6 percent increase in its shares. The company, along with AllianceBernstein Holding L.P (AB), recently announced the official commencement of their joint venture, Bernstein. It is a cash equities and equity research business.
