By Thursday’s midday trading the DAX had slipped into the red, trading just below the level it had opened at. At about 12:30 p.m. German time the index stood at 24,565 points, 0.2 % lower than the previous day’s close. The top performers were Deutsche Börse, SAP and Siemens, while the laggards were Rheinmetall, Volkswagen and BMW.
Market‑advisor Andreas Lipkow noted that investors were again facing heightened volatility in precious‑metal markets and comparatively weak corporate earnings. He pointed out that Shell had been hurt by lower oil prices and had reported a profit below market expectations.
Lipkow also said that the Bank of England and ECB meetings were unlikely to bring any rate changes, and the subsequent press conferences were expected to add little surprise, leading investors to take profits and adopt more cautious, side‑lining positions.
The euro weakened slightly by Thursday afternoon, trading at $1.1789, which made a dollar worth €0.8482.
Meanwhile, Brent crude fell sharply. At around 12:00 p.m. German time a barrel of North Sea‑grade Brent sold for $68.62, down 84 cents or 1.2 % from the previous day’s close.