The Dax index had a subdued start to the trading day on Friday and continued to decline until midday. By 12:30 pm, the index had been calculated at around 22,360 points, a 0.2 percent increase over the previous day’s close.
“The Dax is lingering before the weekend of German elections in a state of anxiety” said market analyst Andreas Lipkow. “Investors will tend to hold back before the election results. The published purchasing managers’ indexes in the manufacturing sector signal a slight recovery, but in the services sector, a decline is also shown.”
“A similar overall economic picture is emerging in Europe. In the trading period so far, 25 of the Dax’s 40 companies are holding onto their gains, while 15 companies are in the red. Among the losers are the shares of the Mercedes-Benz Group, which presented its quarterly results yesterday” Lipkow added.
The European common currency was weaker on Friday afternoon: one euro was worth 1.0467 US dollars and one dollar was worth 0.9554 euros.