On Monday the DAX slipped weakly at open but had trimmed its losses by midday. Around 12:30 p.m., the index was trading at 24,810 points, about 1.9 % below yesterday’s closing level. The strongest performers were Deutsche Börse, Rheinmetall, and RWE; the weakest were Deutsche Bank, Volkswagen, and Continental.
Analyst commentary:
CMC Markets’ chief market analyst Andreas Lipkow noted that the DAX is currently hovering near 24,900 points, giving it room to bounce back more than 1 % from its intraday low at the opening. He added that, despite a sharp rise in energy prices, price declines in the index have largely stayed within limits. “Investors are now focused on how long the elevated crude‑oil price level will last and on the future direction of the euro‑dollar pair” Lipkow said. “Macro data are taking a back seat for the moment; attention remains on developments in the Middle East”.
US‑President outlook:
The president has officially projected a potential conflict duration of four to five weeks. Lipkow sees that as a tolerable impact on the overall European economy. Crude‑oil prices between $80 and $85 are unlikely to trigger major market disruptions in the near term. However, he warned that “only if prices were to surge above $100 and stay at that level for several months would it become a serious factor for European economic development”.
Currency snapshot:
At Monday noon the euro was weaker: 1 € = $1.1732, while 1 $ = €0.8524.
Oil price movement:
Brent crude rose sharply during the day. At about 12:00 p.m. German time, a barrel of North Sea Brent traded at $78.58, up 7.8 % from the previous day’s close.
