The German stock index, DAX, opened Monday with marginal declines. Around 9:30 AM, the benchmark index was calculated at approximately 25,790 points, marking a slight drop of 0.1 percent compared to Friday’s closing level. The top performers on the market list included Symrise, Infineon, and Zalando, while Bayer, Deutsche Telekom, and Rheinmetall rounded out the notable movers.
In currency markets, the European common currency showed strength on Monday morning; one Euro was valued at $1.1200, meaning a dollar exchanged for 0.8929 Euros.
Meanwhile, oil prices fell. Early Monday morning (around 9 AM German time), a barrel of North Sea Brent crude cost $109.70, representing a decrease of 3.3 percent, or $3.76, from the previous day’s closing.
Thomas Altmann of QC Partners noted that the drop in oil prices came as the week began. He commented that market reaction has been positive to reports suggesting Donald Trump intends initially to favor diplomatic approaches. Furthermore, he suggested that a falling oil price generally has a positive effect on other asset classes, particularly stocks, which are reacting with higher prices. Although the possibility of another US military strike remains, the likelihood of it happening immediately after the midterms has significantly decreased.
