The German stock market benchmark, the DAX, managed a positive finish on Thursday, closing at 24,296 points. This represented a modest increase of 0.2 percent compared to the previous day’s close, despite a challenging trading day characterized by an initial strong start that subsequently faced headwinds.
The European Central Bank’s (ECB) interest rate decision, announced earlier in the day, had minimal impact on market performance. As anticipated, the central bank maintained its key interest rates unchanged.
Deutsche Bank shares experienced a significant boost, climbing nearly 9 percent until just before the market’s closing bell. This surge followed the release of the bank’s first-half earnings, which revealed a substantial increase in profits, exceeding the entire earnings of the previous year threefold.
Telekom shares also performed strongly, appreciating roughly 5 percent compared to the previous day’s value. Conversely, Infineon and MTU saw notable declines in similar magnitudes.
The euro strengthened slightly during Thursday afternoon trading, fetching 1.1776 US dollars, which meant one US dollar was worth 0.8492 euros.
