The DAX slipped most of the gains it had made in the first part of the trading day. By about 12:30 p.m. CET the index stood at roughly 24 850 points, up 0.2 % compared with the previous close. Daimler Truck, Siemens Energy and Deutsche Post took the top three spots, while Zalando, Merck and SAP were at the bottom of the list.
Market analyst Andreas Lipkow said the situation in global financial markets had once again calmed somewhat, and volatility is easing not only on commodity markets. “The recent sharp price swings were a bit much and posed a significant challenge to many investors” he added. “Right now the focus is largely on the upcoming earnings season and forthcoming macro data”.
Lipkow also noted that tensions between the United States and Iran are cooling, bringing a little more short‑term predictability. “That said, the geopolitical pendulum can still swing quickly in the medium term, which keeps things interesting” he explained.
At mid‑day the euro was slightly weaker: 1 Euro was worth 1.1790 U.S. dollars, and 1 U.S. dollar was equal to 0.8482 euro. Meanwhile, Brent crude fell a touch; a barrel of North Sea Brent was trading at about $66.28, 2 cents lower – or 0.0 % – than the close on the previous trading day.