At the big expiry date on the futures exchanges, the Dax remained within sight of the round mark of 18,000 points. At times, the leading German index was close to the record high it had reached the day before. In view of the somewhat weak US stock markets, the Dax closed on Friday 0.03 percent in the red at 17,936.65 points. The MDax, the index of medium-sized stocks, fell by 0.75 percent to 26,064.14 points.
At the big expiry date on the futures exchanges, the Dax remained within sight of the round mark of 18,000 points. At times, the leading German index was close to the record high it had reached the day before. In view of the somewhat weak US stock markets, the Dax closed on Friday 0.03 percent in the red at 17,936.65 points. The MDax, the index of medium-sized stocks, fell by 0.75 percent to 26,064.14 points.
On Friday, options and futures on indices and individual stocks expired on the futures exchanges, which could result in large price fluctuations for individual stocks. The day before, after the record in the Dax at a good 18,039 points, unexpectedly significant increases in US producer prices had rekindled concerns about inflation and further dampened hopes of interest rate cuts.
According to market analyst Jochen Stanzl from the trading company CMC Markets, only a slim majority of the market now expects the first interest rate cut in the USA in June. The tension ahead of the US Federal Reserve’s key interest rate decision next week is increasing because people are hoping for signals of possible easing.
Among other things, hopes of interest rate cuts had kept the rally in the Dax alive in the past few months. Since the turn of the year, the stock market barometer has gained 7.1 percent, and on a weekly basis the German leading index has increased by 0.69 percent.
The high level of interest rates has noticeably strained the situation on the real estate market because many housing companies are heavily financed by loans. The entire sector was under pressure before the weekend in the wake of Vonovia, as Germany’s largest landlord had scared off investors with a new dividend policy and changed key indicators. Observers spoke of very complex innovations, the papers slipped by 10.6 percent at the end of the Dax.
Concerns about demand overshadowed the prices of chip stocks: Infineon shares, also one of the weakest DAX stocks, lost six percent. According to a report by the Bloomberg news agency, the Chinese government is trying to encourage domestic electric car manufacturers to purchase more domestic electronic chips in order to strengthen China’s semiconductor industry and reduce dependence on the West.
According to the final figures, Hellofresh rose to first place in the MDax by almost eleven percent. Some investors may have been relieved that the meal kit retailer did not come up with any further dramatic news. Last week the price reached a record low due, among other things, to lost medium-term targets. In the back rows of the stock exchange, the price of the agricultural trader Baywa fell by almost ten percent due to a canceled dividend.
The Eurozone leading index EuroStoxx 50 fell by 0.14 percent to 4986.02 points. The Cac 40 in Paris saved a mini-plus to the finish, while the FTSE 100 in London closed slightly in the red. In New York, the Dow Jones Industrial fell by 0.6 percent at the European market close.
The price of the euro fell. The European Central Bank set the reference rate at 1.0892 (Thursday: 1.0925) US dollars. The dollar therefore cost 0.9181 (0.9153) euros. On the bond market, the current yield rose from 2.42 percent the day before to 2.49 percent. The Rex bond index lost 0.31 percent to 124.67 points. The Bund future remained at 131.90 points in percentage terms.
Source: Stern
