On Thursday the DAX slipped. At the Xetra close the index was calculated at 23,590 points, a decline of 0.2 percent from the previous trading day’s close. After a weak start the index briefly moved into positive territory around midday, but the losses widened again in the afternoon.
“Investors remain primarily focused on events in the Middle East and their impact on oil prices” said Andreas Lipkow, chief market analyst at CMC Markets. “At the moment they are working under a scenario where the emergency reserves of the U.S. and Europe will hold until the war in Iran ends. Whether this actually unfolds as expected is entirely unclear” Lipkow added. “At least it helps prevent panic selling in European equity markets in the short run. The large hedging positions that were built before the Iran conflict also dampen most potential price falls”.
Closing‑day performance saw Zalando and Brenntag at the top of the price list, while Heidelberg Materials and Deutsche Bank were at the bottom.
Gas prices rose: a megawatt‑hour of gas for April delivery cost €51, which is 1 percent higher than the day before. This would translate into a consumer price of roughly 10 to 12 cents per kilowatt‑hour (kWh) including ancillary charges and taxes if the level persists.
Oil prices jumped sharply: on Thursday afternoon around 17:00 German time a barrel of North Sea Brent fetched $99.78, an increase of 8.5 percent compared to the previous day’s close.
The euro weakened in the afternoon: one euro was worth $1.1527, meaning one U.S. dollar could be exchanged for 0.8675 euros.
