(Updated with futures contracts, closing of Chinese stock exchanges, opening of the
bond market in Europe)
    * European stock markets expected to decline at the opening
    * Biden unveiled $1.9 trillion stimulus package
    * Investors question its cost
    * The coronavirus pandemic has not said its last word

    by Patrick Vignal
    ARIS, Jan 15 (Reuters) - The main European stock exchanges are
expected in the red Friday at the opening, penalized by concerns
on the cost of the stimulus plan unveiled Thursday by Joe Biden and by the persistence
health risk.   
    According to the futures contracts, the Parisian CAC 40 could lose
around 0.6% at the start of the session, the Dax in Frankfurt would fall by
0.7% and the FTSE in London would drop 0.5%.
    The US President-elect on Thursday unveiled a draft recovery plan for
1.900 billion dollars (1.562 billion euros) to compensate for the damage
economic consequences of the coronavirus health crisis and accelerate the fight against
the epidemic in the United States, the most affected country in the world.
    Joe Biden promised during his election campaign to take more
serious the health crisis than Republican President Donald
Trump, and the project he has presented aims to walk the talk with
a range of health resources and economic aids.
    "A crisis of profound human suffering is in plain sight and there is no
no time to waste. We have to act and we have to act now," he said.
said Thursday evening during a speech from Wilmington, Delaware, where he
resides.
    The plan includes $415 billion to strengthen the fight and
vaccination against COVID-19, about 1,000 billion in direct aid to
households and some 440 billion in aid for small businesses and
municipalities most seriously affected by the health crisis.
    Checks for $1,400 will be paid to Americans, far more than the
600 dollars paid under the last recovery plan voted by Congress.
Unemployment benefit will be increased to $400 a week from $300
currently, and extended until September.
    Investors are wondering about the financing of this plan and its
consequences on the public deficit of the largest economy in the world.
    “If this new recovery plan is ratified, it risks
cause the public finances, which were posting a
record deficit between October and December", observes John Plassard, strategist at
Mirabaud Securities.  
    On the coronavirus front, the news is not good. the
United Kingdom recorded 1,248 deaths on Thursday, the threshold of two million cases has
been exceeded in Germany and France, the curfew at 6 p.m. will be extended on Saturday
to the whole territory.
    
    VALUES TO FOLLOW:

    IN ASIA 
    The Tokyo Stock Exchange ended down 0.62% and the CSI 300 index
mainland Chinese large caps lost 0.2%,
penalized by fears of a resurgence of the coronavirus pandemic in
this part of the world.  
    The MSCI index grouping stocks from Asia and the Pacific (excluding Japan)
 nevertheless remains very close to its absolute record.

    AT WALL STREET 
    The New York Stock Exchange ended lower on Thursday, shortly before Joe's announcements
Biden but after that of a further rise in jobless claims
in the USA. 
    The Dow Jones index lost 0.22% or 68.95 points to 30,991.52
points. 
    The broader S&P-500 fell 14.3 points, or 0.38%, to 3,795.54
points and the Nasdaq Composite fell 16.31 points (-0.12%) to
13,112.64 points. 
    Faced with the economic crisis caused by the pandemic, the President of the
Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell, estimated on Thursday that no rate hike
was to be expected in the near future and refuted the idea that the Fed could
soon revise its share buyback program downwards.
    At values, Intel climbed more than 4%, the biggest rise in the
Dow, after several recommendation upgrades and record results from the
Taiwanese TSMC (+6%).
    On the downside, asset management giant BlackRock lost 4.6%
after the publication of its quarterly results, although superior to the
expectations. The stock has gained almost 50% since its low point of
September and ended Wednesday at a historic high.
    
    RATES/EXCHANGES
    US government bond yield drops to 1.1%
after climbing close to 1.13% on Thursday, driven by the rise in
inflation expectations.
    In the first exchanges in Europe, the 10-year Bund, rate of
benchmark for the euro zone, varies little, at -0.555%. 
    The dollar, for its part, rose very slightly against a benchmark basket, the
Jerome Powell's dovish words dampen his rebound, and the euro loses a bit
of ground, around 1.2145.
    
    OIL 
    Oil prices, which had benefited from the fall in the dollar, are
down again with the persistence of health fears.
    The barrel of Brent lost 1.26% to 55.71 dollars and the light crude
American yields 0.93% to 53.07 dollars.
       
    MAIN ECONOMIC INDICATORS ON THE JANUARY 15 AGENDA:
 COUNTRY GMT INDICATOR PERIOD PREVIOUS CONSENSUS
 FR 07:45 HICP inflation (final) December +0.2% +0.2%
                - over one year 0.0% 0.0%
 USA 1:30 p.m. December retail sales 0.0% -1.1%
                - excluding automobiles -0.1% -0.9%
 USA 2:15 p.m. Industrial production December +0.5% +0.4%
 USA 3:00 p.m. January confidence index 80.0 80.7
                the univ. of Michigan (1st                                
                estimate)                                                  
 
    THE MARKET SITUATION:
    (Some data may show a slight shift)
   
  SCHOLARSHIPS                                                     
 ASIAN                                           
 Indices Last Var. Var. %YTD               
                        points                        
 Nikkei-225 28519.18 -179.08 -0.62% +3.92%            
                                                      
 Topix 1856.61 -16.67 -0.89% +2.88%            
                                                      
 Hong Kong 28,519.65 +22.79 +0.08% +4.73%            
                                                      
 Taiwan 15,616.39 -90.80 -0.58% +6.00%            
                                                      
 Seoul 3085.90 -64.03 -2.03% +7.39%            
                                                      
 Singapore 3006.61 +6.61 +0.22% +5.72%            
                                                      
 Shanghai 3566.72 +0.82 +0.02% +2.70%            
                                                      
 Sydney 6715.40 +0.10 +0.00% +1.95%            
                                                      
 The closing in Tokyo:                                         
                                                      
                                                              
  WALL                                                        
 STREET                                               
  Fence                                                  
 former :                                         
 Indices Last Var. Var. %YTD               
                        points                        
 Dow Jones 30991.52 -68.95 -0.22% +1.26%            
                                                      
 S&P 500 3795.54 -14.30 -0.38% +1.05%            
                                                      
 Nasdaq 13112.64 -16.31 -0.12% +1.74%            
                                                      
 Nasdaq 100 12898.69 -74.94 -0.58% +0.08%            
                                                      
                                                              
  Detail of the session on the Wall                                  
 Street:                                             
 "The Day Ahead" - Update on the                            
 next session on Wall Street                       
                                                              
  MARKETS                                                     
 EUROPEANS                                            
 Futures on the CAC 40 and on                    
 the EuroStoxx50                                        
                                                              
  The values to follow in Paris                                
 and in Europe:                                       
  The previous session                                        
 :                                                    
 Closing Indices Var. Var. %YTD               
                        points                        
 Eurofirst 1589.10 +11.25 +0.71% +3.42%            
 300                                                  
                                                      
 Eurostoxx 3641.37 +24.86 +0.69% +2.50%            
 50                                                   
                                                      
 CAC 40 5,681.14 +18.47 +0.33% +2.34%            
                                                      
 Dax 30 13,988.70 +48.99 +0.35% +1.97%            
                                                      
 FTSE 6801.96 +56.44 +0.84% +5.29%            
                                                      
 SMI 10850.81 +3.93 +0.04% +1.38%            
                                                              
  CHANGES                                                     
              Var. %YTD               
 Euro/Dlr 1.2140 1.2156 -0.13% -0.60%            
                                                      
 DLR/Yen 103.68 103.79 -0.11% +0.49%            
                                                      
 Euro/Yen 125.89 126.16 -0.21% -0.81%            
                                                      
 Dlr/CHF 0.8883 0.8880 +0.03% +0.36%            
                                                      
 Euro/CHF 1.0786 1.0792 -0.06% -0.19%            
                                                      
 Stg/Dlr 1.3668 1.3687 -0.14% -0.04%            
                                                      
 Index $ 90.3530 90.2390 +0.13% -6.05%            
                                                      
                                                              
  RATE                                                        
                        Last Var. Spread/Bund
                                                (pts)
                                                              
 10-year Bund -0.5580 -0.0050                     
                                                      
 2-year Bund -0.7300 -0.0030                     
                                                      
 10-year OATs -0.3408 -0.0090 +21.72            
                                                      
 10-year Treasury 1.1005 -0.0280                     
                                                      
 Treasury 2 years 0.1410 -0.0060                     
                                                      
                                                              
                                                              
  OIL                                                     
 (In Progress Previous Var Var.% YTD
 dollars) t                             
 Light crude 53.11 53.57 -0.46 -0.86% -13.23%
 US                                                   
 Brent 55.76 56.42 -0.66 -1.17% -15.55%
                                                      
                                                              
 
    

 (edited by Blandine Hénault)