The German index, the Dax, initially saw gains on Thursday but partially retraced those profits by midday. By roughly 12:30 PM, the leading index was calculated at around 24,950 points, registering a slight increase of 0.2 percent compared to the previous day’s closing level. Siemens, Siemens Energy, and Hochtief led the gains, while stocks from Rheinmetall, the Deutsche Börse, and Telekom experienced declines.
Andreas Lipkow, Chief Market Analyst at CMC Markets, noted that a relative sense of calm persists across most trading venues, including the Frankfurt Exchange, despite the recent escalation in the Middle East. He reported that investors are currently concentrating on perceived long-term trends in the AI and semiconductor sectors, seeking out the primary beneficiaries of the massive investment influx in these fields. Additionally, defensive industries such as pharmaceuticals and financial stocks remain a focus of buying interest.
Regarding the German economy, the trade balance provided another positive sign today. Lipkow mentioned that exports appear to be stabilizing, a trend that positively affects the cyclical auto manufacturers, machine builders, and the chemical industry. While this helps temporarily overshadow the negative impacts of rising energy prices, he cautioned that the long-term prospect of a sustainable economic recovery in Germany hinges on how geopolitical developments in the Middle East unfold.
On the currency markets, the Euro strengthened slightly on Thursday afternoon, trading at $1.1428 per dollar, meaning the dollar could be acquired for 0.8750 Euros.
In commodity markets, the price of gold increased, climbing 0.7 percent in the afternoon to reach $4,105 per fine ounce, equating to 115.48 Euros per gram. Conversely, the price of oil rose mildly. At approximately 12:00 PM German time on Thursday, a barrel of North Sea Brent crude was trading at $78.26, an increase of 0.3 percent, or 24 cents, from the prior day’s close.
