Equities Frankfurt: Investors more cautious ahead of Fed interest rate decision

FRANKFURT (dpa-AFX) – Investors held back on Wednesday before the US Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision. After the friendly start to November and initially a robust start, the Dax (DAX 40) fell by 0.24 percent to 13,307.02 points around midday. The MDAX even fell by 0.94 percent to 23,793.23 points, while the Eurozone index EuroStoxx (EURO STOXX 50) fell by just 0.1 percent.

There’s another rate hike by the Fed by 0.75 percentage points is considered a foregone conclusion, statements on the outlook in particular should be decisive in the evening. “Because many on the market hope and expect that the Fed will slow down from the next interest rate meeting in December. If these hopes are disappointed, there could be new turbulence on the stock exchanges,” warned expert Thomas Altmann from asset manager QC Partners.

However, the expert rated it positively that even after the rise of the Dax by more than ten percent since the end of September, investors are still hardly taking any profits. Most recently, the Dax ended seven trading days in a row with a positive sign. In his opinion, however, it would only be the “great liberation” if the leading index exceeded its 200-day average. This long-term indicator, popular with investors, is currently at 13,656 points.

TeamViewer shares, which were badly hit after the first pandemic euphoria, recorded particularly significant price gains. The titles of the software provider specializing in remote maintenance jumped 17 percent after good quarterly figures and tested their 200-day average in the course of this. Stockbrokers were impressed by the adjusted operating margin and the invoiced sales (billings).

The papers of the Norma Group (NORMA Group SE), which rose by 3.8 percent at the top of the SDAX, were also in demand for figures. On the market, there was praise above all for the turnover and the operating result. According to a trader, the manufacturer of connection technology is in a good position to meet the annual targets. This is not a matter of course after a weak previous quarter and brings relief.

Meanwhile, Internet stocks generally retreated after a strong previous day, and despite good quarterly figures, the titles of AUTO1 followed with a discount of 3.1 percent. JPMorgan analyst Marcus Diebel praised the figures for the third quarter, but sees little gain with them. Rather, it is likely to take a few more quarters before investor confidence returns given the good financial indicators.

A major loser in the MDax was the Varta papers, down 3.6 percent, after the analysis firm Warburg reversed its previous buy recommendation. In his study, analyst Robert-Jan van der Horst was more skeptical about the financial strength of the battery group, which was limited in the short to medium term.

Real estate stocks also showed general weakness, such as the Dax member Vonovia (Vonovia SE (ex Deutsche Annington)) with a setback of 5.5 percent. Here it was said that the prospect of rising interest rates for a long time is now weighing on the recently recovered sector stocks. They are considered to be particularly vulnerable to rising capital market interest rates. On the other hand, more defensive stocks from the healthcare industry were favored in the Dax, above all the pharmaceutical company Merck with a two percent plus./tih/mis

— By Timo Hausdorf, dpa-AFX —

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