After an initially positive start, the German stock market quickly ran out of momentum on Friday morning. The Dax turned moderately negative in the first hour of trading and was last listed 0.04 percent lower at 15,516.90 points. The MDax also lost 0.26 percent to 27,388.16 points. The Eurozone leading index EuroStoxx 50, like the Dax, was almost on the spot with minus 0.02 percent at 4284.47 points.

Investors held back from data on inflation from the euro zone and the US, wrote Christian Henke from broker IG. The topic of the banking crisis has now almost been ticked off for the market, “now the topics of inflation and interest rates are in focus again.”

The day before, the Dax had closed above the 15,500 mark for the first time in three weeks. This means that the high for the year at a good 15,706 points from the beginning of March has recently come closer. The losses since the collapse of the Silicon Valley Bank, which helped start the banking problems, are almost balanced. The most recent wave of recovery was driven by hopes that the central banks would be less tough in the future. The forthcoming inflation data from the euro zone is therefore important.

On the company side, investors in the Dax focused on the pharmaceutical and laboratory equipment supplier Sartorius. The group buys the gene therapy specialist Polyplus for about 2.4 billion euros via its biotechnology subsidiary. Sartorius stocks came under pressure on the news and fell by around six percent, trailing behind the index. The company is considering a capital increase to finance the takeover.

Shares in the armaments group Rheinmetall, on the other hand, ended up at the top of the Dax with a 1.2 percent premium. Apparently, investors are counting on the group’s continued good business after CEO Armin Papperger traveled to talk to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. According to the head of state, the partnership with Rheinmetall is to be deepened in order to cover the needs of the Ukrainian armed forces.

The annual forecast of the wind turbine manufacturer Nordex could not convince the investors, the papers gave way after a significant plus of the previous day by 4.6 percent. The wind turbine manufacturer cannot rule out an operating loss this year either, since a positive operating margin cannot be guaranteed.