French stocks pare losses after prime minister resigns after less than a month

LONDON — European stocks were mixed on Monday as markets reacted to the shock resignation of France’s Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 was little changed for the session at around 3 p.m. London time (10 a.m. ET), following five consecutive days of positive returns last week, including hitting an all-time high during Thursday’s session.

France’s CAC 40 index fell around 1.4%, paring some of its earlier losses, after Lecornu resigned just weeks after his appointment. The move has sparked fresh political chaos and follows the collapse of the previous government of François Bayrou.

French banks were among those leading the losses, with Societe Generale, BNP Paribas and Credit Agricole all down more than 3%.

The yield on France’s benchmark 10-year bond was last seen at 3.5719%, having previously rose to a 10-day high of 3.5990%, while the euro slipped to $1.1697, down around 0.4% for the session.

Shares of Aston Martin, meanwhile, fell around 8% after the luxury carmaker issued a profit warning citing continued tariff pressures. Renault fell almost 2% after reports that the French auto manufacturer is planning to cut 3,000 jobs across finance, marketing and HR.

Europe’s autos traded mixed, erasing earlier gains, as Stellantis saw its share price advance almost 2% amid reports that the multinational automaker is set to invest about $10 billion in the U.S., with new manufacturing plants in Illinois and Michigan.

Avanza Bank Holding was among the biggest gainers overall on Monday, adding about 4% after the Swedish online bank said its customer base has grown by more than 132,000 this year.

U.S. stocks rose on Monday after Wall Street notched record highs despite the continuing government shutdown. Investors have appeared to shrug off worries about the shutdown, which has delayed the release of key economic data — including the September jobs report — originally due on Friday.

In Asia-Pacific markets overnight, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index jumped over 4% to hit a record high after the country’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party elected Sanae Takaichi as its new leader, positioning her to become the country’s first female prime minister.