FRANKFURT (dpa-AFX) – Against the background of the worsening situation in the Middle East, the German stock market did not develop a uniform direction at the start of the trading month of June. While the DAX benefited primarily from the significant price gains of the heavyweights SAP (SAP SE) and Infineon, the second and third rows of stocks mostly declined.
Around midday, the Dax was 0.3 percent higher at 25,172 points. Last week, the German benchmark index rose to 25,438 points in hopes of a peace agreement between the USA and Iran. However, this prospect received no new support over the course of the week, and so the Dax moved away from its record high of 25,507 points in January.
The MDAX with the medium-sized stock exchange companies fell by 0.5 percent to 33,182 points on Monday. The Eurozone leading index EuroStoxx 50 rose by 0.1 percent.
The Iranian Revolutionary Guards reported a retaliatory strike after a US airstrike. The Gulf state of Kuwait had previously raised the alarm about air strikes. The US military said it bombed radar and drone control centers in Iran over the weekend after Tehran was said to have shot down an American drone. The USA and Iran have been struggling for days to reach a framework agreement to extend the ceasefire that has been in effect since April 8th.
“The Iran conflict remains unresolved, but hope continues to prevail on the financial markets. While the political reality is still characterized by open questions, investors are already turning their attention to a possible peace in the Middle East,” commented market analyst Timo Emden.
Market strategist Mislav Matejka from JPMorgan continues to see a favorable relationship between opportunities and risks on the stock market in the second half of the year. Despite the records in the MSCI World UCITS and MSCI Emerging Markets Index, the market is still far from being valued for the optimal case.
The shares of Mercedes-Benz (Mercedes-Benz Group (ex Daimler)) were unimpressed by a proposed law in the USA that could result in a sales ban on the important market and rose by 1.1 percent. A bill that has passed a committee in the US House of Representatives would ban the production and sale in the US of vehicles whose manufacturers are at least 15 percent owned by “US enemy states”, including China. Almost 20 percent of Mercedes shares are owned by the Chinese, state-controlled car company BAIC and the owner of the Geely car group (Geely).
Siemens Energy shares rose by 0.6 percent. The inclusion in the “European Conviction List” of the investment bank Goldman Sachs provided a boost. Analyst Ajay Patel assumes that the group will increase its medium-term targets with the annual balance sheet and announce news about the distributions to shareholders. He sees Siemens Energy as a “structural winner” in times of increasing electricity demand from AI data centers and higher investments in network technology.
The defense electronics company HENSOLDT is expecting a better inflow of free financial resources this year thanks to higher customer deposits. This is mainly due to higher customer deposits, which are supported by accelerated procurement processes in Germany. At minus 3.9 percent, the Hensoldt stocks were still among the weakest stocks on the local market./edh/jha/
— By Eduard Holetic, dpa-AFX —