At the start of the week, the DAX gained sharply. By the close of Xetra trading, the index stood at 25 014 points, up 1.2 % from the prior day.
“After the election in Japan and easing tensions in the Middle East, optimism dominates the German equity market as the week begins” said Andreas Lipkow, chief market analyst at CMC Markets. The ruling Liberal Democratic Party secured more than 75 % of the vote, enabling Premier Takaichi to essentially rule alone.
The stock market likes clear political majorities, and the Nikkei jumped over 55 000 points, setting a new record. Reduced friction between the United States and Iran also helped pull oil prices lower, providing a tailwind that allowed the DAX to rally on Friday’s gains and surpass the 24 900 level.
Overall, investors grew a touch more confident over the weekend that the current phase of high volatility might soon taper off. Even though software shares had fallen sharply, they show signs of stabilising. Nonetheless, concerns about rising investment costs on one side and disruptive AI impacts on the other are not likely to disappear quickly.
“That’s why there was a lot of caution in Frankfurt today; buying sentiment for German stocks only returned in the afternoon” Lipkow added.
The euro strengthened in midday trading on Monday: one euro fetched 1.1895 US dollars, meaning one dollar was worth 0.8407 euros.
Gold posted a strong upward move, trading at $5 076 per fine ounce (up 2.2 %) in the afternoon, equivalent to €137.20 per gram.
Meanwhile, oil climbed noticeably. Brent, a North Sea grade, was trading at $69.06 per barrel at about 17:00 local time on Monday, a 1.5 % increase over the previous day’s close.