European stock markets experienced moderate declines Friday, with the DAX closing the morning session down 0.5 percent at approximately 23,920 points. Trading remained cautious as investors approached a long weekend in the United States and the end of the month.
Rheinmetall, Sartorius and Merck led gainers on the DAX, while BASF, Deutsche Bank and Infineon saw the steepest declines. Market analysts attribute the downturn, in part, to institutional investors taking profits and reducing portfolio risk at the month’s close. This pattern is reflected in the distribution of winning and losing stocks. Potential shifts could occur later in the day following the release of economic data.
The Euro weakened slightly against the US dollar, trading at 1.1667 USD, while the dollar was valued at 0.8571 EUR.
Oil prices also fell, with Brent crude oil trading at 68.05 USD per barrel, a decrease of 0.8 percent from the previous day’s close.