CAC 40 Edges Higher On Fed Repricing

(RTTNews) - French stocks advanced on Wednesday as investors continued to assess the prospects for interest- rate cuts following last week's weaker-than-expected U.S. jobs report. It seems that markets have shrugged off comments from Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari, who said Tuesday that rates will likely stay high for an "extending period" and that he would support a hike if inflation stalls near 3 percent.

The benchmark CAC 40 was up 66 points, or 0.8 percent, at 8,141 after adding 1 percent the previous day.

In corporate news, Alstom SA shares surged 4.6 percent.

The manufacturer of infrastructures for rail transport sector said it is planning a capital increase of about €1 billion ($1.1 billion) to shore up its finances.