The German stock market stabilized somewhat on Monday despite growing concerns about the economy as a result of a disappointing Ifo business climate. After an extremely weak previous week, the leading index Dax went 0.11 percent lower at 15,813.06 points. Even an attempted coup in Russia at the weekend didn’t upset investors any further. The MDax for medium-sized companies closed 0.16 percent higher at 26,832.80 points. The mood in the German economy deteriorated significantly in June, the Ifo index fell more than expected compared to the previous month.
The meager economic prospects weighed on the share prices of banks at times. Possible loan defaults and higher provisions cloud the situation. The development of rising interest rates, which is actually positive for banks, which has increased the income of credit institutions, is currently taking a back seat, according to the trade. In the case of Commerzbank, there are also problems of its own: the Frankfurt-based institute has to cope with additional million-euro burdens for its Polish subsidiary mBank, and the provisions are increasing. Coba shares fell as much as 4.4 percent but ended down just 0.3 percent.
After the turmoil in Russia at the weekend, armaments values fell across Europe with significant discounts. Rheinmetall fell by 3.2 percent to the end of the Dax, Hensoldt lost 3.1 percent in the MDax. Stockbrokers found it difficult to interpret the price losses. Some investors were now apparently expecting an easing, but traders said that this could hardly be underpinned by fundamentals.
Siemens Energy lost another 2.1 percent after the titles of the energy technology group collapsed by more than 37 percent on Friday after withdrawn forecasts and thus suffered one of the largest daily losses in the Dax. Other analysts were pessimistic at the start of the week. “The calculability is too bad,” said Vivek Midha from Citigroup, explaining the withdrawal of his buy recommendation. The assessment of the situation at the problem child, the Spanish subsidiary Siemens Gamesa, has changed fundamentally compared to its “buy” rating in May.
In the small-cap index SDax, Cewe made a positive impression with a price increase of 3.5 percent. The photo service provider wants to buy back up to 250,000 of its own shares by spring 2024. This corresponds to 5.5 percent of the free float.
The EuroStoxx 50, the leading index in the euro zone, closed 0.21 percent higher at 4280.57 points. France’s Cac 40 rose 0.3 percent, while Britain’s FTSE 100 fell 0.1 percent. In New York, the Dow Jones Industrial hardly moved at the European close.
The euro was recently quoted little changed at 1.0908 US dollars. The disappointing Ifo business climate weighed on the common currency only briefly. The European Central Bank set the reference rate at 1.0918 (Friday: 1.0884) US dollars. The dollar thus cost 0.9159 (0.9188) euros.
On the bond market, the current yield fell from 2.45 percent on Friday to 2.41 percent. The Rex pension index increased by 0.14 percent to 125.18 points. The Bund future gained 0.48 percent to 134.74 points.
