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After a record high:
The Dax continues to struggle with 17,000 points
Photo: Frank Rumpenhorst / picture-alliance/ dpa
The
Dax
temporarily jumped over the 17,000 point hurdle on Monday. In the afternoon, the leading German index gained 0.3 percent to 16,979 points, after temporarily climbing to 17,013 points. It then came back a bit, as there are currently only signs of a stable stock market start in the USA. Previously, it looked like a continuation of the record run - at least for the Nasdaq, which is heavily influenced by technology values. The
MDax
of medium-sized stocks recently rose by 1.1 percent to 26,013 points.
More excitement on the stock market is not expected until Tuesday, when the ZEW economic expectations, an important German leading indicator for the economy, will be published. In the USA there are also consumer prices, which are the subject of great attention worldwide. The inflation data from the world's largest economy, along with the US labor market and other important US economic data, are among the key indicators that the US Federal Reserve Bank uses for its interest rate decisions. The majority of the market now expects the first key interest rate cut in May.
Another record for Novo Nordisk
Shares in Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk rose to another record high on Monday. Investors temporarily paid 845.70 Danish kroner for the paper, but it turned negative by the early afternoon. The price recently fell by around 0.4 percent to 828.50 Danish crowns. That doesn't stop the pharmaceutical giant from flying high: the Danes have gained almost 19 percent in value since the beginning of the year. In the past year, 2023, the group had already increased its market value by almost half. The pharmaceutical company, which specializes in diabetes and hemophilia, has a market value of around 500 billion euros. The hype surrounding weight loss medications has been driving stocks for a long time.
SAP replaces Plattner's successor
Among the individual stocks in this country , Siemens Energy
shares climbed
to the top of the DAX with almost 5.1 percent. They benefited from an upgrade by the Spanish bank Santander.
Rheinmetall
was also one of the favorites with a plus of 2.55 percent. The arms company is in the process of significantly expanding its production of artillery shells. He also reiterated his ambition to double sales to 20 billion euros in seven to eight years, as boss
Armin Papperger
told the “Handelsblatt” in an interview. Overall
, the shares of Rheinmetall and those of the defense electronics specialist
Hensoldt
continue to benefit from the prospect of increasing defense spending in Western countries. Hensoldt gained 2.85 percent on Monday.
Meanwhile , SAP
fell
by 0.62 percent at the end of the DAX. However, the shares had only reached a record last week. Surprisingly, the designated chairman of the supervisory board, Punit Renjen, and the software company are going their separate ways because of different ideas about his role as the future chairman of the committee, as it became known at the weekend. The American, who is intended to be the successor to co-founder Hasso Plattner, will resign his mandate at the AGM in May. Europe's largest software manufacturer has
already presented a replacement for Renjen
in former Nokia manager
Pekka Ala-Pietilä .
According to preliminary figures for 2023,
the shares of the wind turbine manufacturer
Nordex
were in high demand in the MDax. They gained more than 8 percent at the top of the index for medium-sized stocks. There were light and shadows in the figures, as the wind turbine manufacturer significantly exceeded analysts' sales expectations, but its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (Ebitda) fell short. Analyst Constantin Hesse from Jefferies still spoke of “solid numbers” overall.
Dow and Nasdaq at new record highs
In the USA, the
Dow
and the technology-heavy
Nasdaq 100
rose to a new record high. For the first time, the Nasdaq stock exchange exceeded the 18,000 point mark. The leading index Dow Jones Industrial was recently up 0.3 percent at 38,801 points, while the market-wide
S&P 500
gained 0.2 percent to 5,033 points
After the impressive price rally of the past few months, investors may be holding back a bit before US consumer prices for January are published on Tuesday. These could provide new information about the future monetary policy of the US Federal Reserve.
Bitcoin near $50,000
The cryptocurrency Bitcoin temporarily rose to $49,800 on Monday and is on track to cross the $50,000 mark again. It is the highest level in more than two years. This year alone, Bitcoin has gained around 18 percent, as demand for Bitcoin ETFs in the USA, the expected interest rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve and the Bitcoin halving, which is due to take place in a few weeks, are strengthening demand from crypto fans.
At the same time, the recent significant price increases are again attracting crypto fortune seekers. Exchange-traded ETFs also allow investors to gain access to Bitcoin through regulated providers without having to go through a crypto exchange.
Oil prices are falling slightly
Oil prices fell slightly on Monday. A barrel (159 liters) of North Sea
Brent
for delivery in April cost $81.92 in the morning. That was 27 cents less than on Friday. The price for a barrel of the American variety West Texas Intermediate (
WTI
) for March delivery is up 28 cents to $76.56.
This means that oil prices initially did not continue the sharp rise of the previous week. Recently, ongoing geopolitical risks in the Middle East had driven oil prices. Crude oil from the North Sea rose in price by around four dollars per barrel last week.
At the weekend, the USA again attacked targets of the Iran-backed Houthi militia in Yemen in order to prevent new attacks on ships in the Red Sea. Shipping routes run through the Red Sea, which are also of great importance for the oil trade. Earlier this week, the market noted recent statements by Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, which provided evidence of progress toward a diplomatic solution to the Gaza war.
With news agencies