(RTTNews) - French stocks rose slightly on Wednesday ahead of a crucial no-confidence vote by lawmakers in parliament against Prime Minister Michel Barnier's government over a budget dispute.
Barnier kept his hopes alive by expressing willingness to negotiate the budget with Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally and other parties.
The benchmark CAC 40 was up 24 points, or 0.3 percent, at 7,280 after rising 0.3 percent in the previous session.
Banks traded higher, with BNP Paribas and Credit Agricole rising over 1 percent each.
Automaker Renault, which is enhancing its EV segment with an expansion into China, rallied 2.7 percent.
Sanofi SA edged down slightly after the company announced plans to invest around 1 billion euros ($1.05 billion) to build a new insulin production base in Beijing.
