The CAC 40, which had suffered three consecutive declines for a cumulative loss of 3.09%, is up around 1.94% at midday, reaching 8,068.79 points. The trend is consistent across other European markets. Frankfurt's DAX 40 is up 2.42%, London has gained 1.63%, and Amsterdam is climbing by 1.86%.

In the United States yesterday, indices that had been trading lower or cautiously recovered following comments by Donald Trump. The Dow Jones, for instance, managed to snap a brief two-day streak of sharp losses, gaining 0.50%.

Hopes for a "Quick" End to the Conflict

Last night, during a telephone interview with CBS News, Donald Trump stated that "the war is practically over," while noting that the U.S. was "well ahead" of the initial five-week estimate for the conflict's duration. Furthermore, the American president mentioned that he could take control of the Strait of Hormuz.

This announcement triggered a decline in crude oil prices, which had been weighing on markets since the start of hostilities. Currently, North Sea Brent is resuming its ascent after a brief lull, gaining 2.42% to 91.45 dollars, while WTI in New York is edging up 0.10% to 88.70 dollars.

Consequently, oil stocks, which had largely benefited from rising crude prices, are in the red. TotalEnergies is down 1.60%, while Equinor has fallen 4.15%, despite announcing oil and gas discoveries in the North Sea.

Elsewhere in corporate news, Renault is up 2.03% following the presentation of its new strategic plan focused on innovation, competitiveness, and international development.

STMicroelectronics is gaining 4.35%, supported by a favorable note from Deutsche Bank, which confirmed its "buy" rating on the stock while raising its price target from 28 to 32 euros.

In Germany, Hugo Boss is climbing 2.91% after the fashion specialist's annual EBIT improved last year, rising from 361 to 391 million euros.

Volkswagen Group is up 3.06% despite a decline in annual results. However, for Jefferies, this came as no surprise.

In the United Kingdom, Rolls-Royce is jumping 5.27% after announcing the signing of a memorandum of understanding with Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa (PGZ), Poland's leading defense group, to strengthen cooperation on propulsion technologies for military vehicles.

Macroeconomics and Currencies

Regarding economic data, Chinese trade is performing well. Its trade surplus reached 214 billion dollars over the January/February period, compared to expectations of "only" 180 billion dollars.

In France, the trade deficit for January improved despite fears of a deterioration. It settled at -1.8 billion euros, compared to a forecast of -5.2 billion euros and a previous figure of -4.3 billion euros.

This afternoon in the United States, investors will look to existing home sales data at 3:00 PM. A very slight decrease is expected, from 3.91 to 3.89 million units.

On the currency market, the euro is rising against the greenback (+0.15%), trading at 1.1633 dollars.