Frankfurt - German share indices ended the trading session lower on Thursday, with sector declines concentrated in Technology, Telecoms and Software, sending the benchmark DAX to a 1.77% fall at the close.
At the close, the DAX was down 1.77%, the MDAX fell 1.18% and the TecDAX lost 2.53%. The session featured a mix of outsized moves among individual names, with semiconductor and banking stocks among the worst performers and several industrial and engineering-related names advancing.
Notable movers on the DAX
- Daimler Truck Holding AG (ETR:DTGGe) was one of the day’s best performers, gaining 3.93% or 1.73 points to finish at 45.77.
- Merck KGaA (ETR:MRCG) added 1.72% or 2.35 points to close at 139.25.
- GEA Group AG (ETR:G1AG) rose 1.12% or 0.70 points to end the session at 63.30.
- On the downside, Infineon Technologies AG NA O.N. (ETR:IFXGn) posted a 6.17% decline, down 4.31 points to 65.49 at the close.
- Commerzbank AG O.N. (ETR:CBKG) fell 5.44% or 2.09 points to 36.35.
- Zalando SE (ETR:ZALG) closed down 4.08% or 1.15 points at 27.07.
MDAX and TecDAX highlights
- On the MDAX, Traton SE (ETR:8TRA) led gains, jumping 11.02% to 40.50.
- K+S AG (ETR:SDFGn) closed up 2.75% at 14.59 and Hensoldt AG (ETR:HAGG) rose 2.38% to 79.12.
- Among MDAX decliners, AUTO1 Group SE (ETR:AG1G) was down 4.31% to 23.10, Deutsche Lufthansa AG (ETR:LHAG) lost 4.11% to 8.45 and Puma SE (ETR:PUMG) fell 4.02% to 27.49.
- On the TecDAX, Hensoldt AG (ETR:HAGG) also featured among the leaders with a 2.38% gain to 79.12, Draegerwerk VZO O.N. (ETR:DRWG_p) gained 0.73% to 96.40 and Nagarro SE (ETR:NA9n) added 0.33% to close at 76.15.
Breadth and extremes
Decliners outnumbered advancers on the Frankfurt exchange, with 477 stocks falling versus 183 advancing and 27 finishing unchanged. Shares in Daimler Truck Holding AG reached 52-week highs, rising to 45.77, while Traton SE moved to an all-time high at 40.50. Eckert & Ziegler AG O.N. (ETR:EUZG) declined to a 52-week low of 13.49 after a 4.66% drop.
Volatility and other market indicators
The DAX volatility index, which reflects implied volatility in DAX options, rose 1.48% to 17.50 by the close.
In commodities, gold futures for August delivery fell 2.42% or 100.35 to $4,051.55 per troy ounce. Crude oil prices moved higher: the September WTI contract rose 6.14% or 5.33 to $92.16 per barrel, and the September Brent contract increased 6.77% or 6.37 to trade at $100.44 per barrel.
On the currency front, EUR/USD was essentially unchanged at 1.14 with a 0.33% note in the report, and EUR/GBP was reported unchanged at 0.85 with a 0.20% move. The US Dollar Index Futures stood higher by 0.34% at 101.30.
Additional decliners identified in late trade
- SUSS MicroTec SE (ETR:SMHNn) lost 5.17% to settle at 79.80.
- Eckert & Ziegler AG O.N. (ETR:EUZG) was down 4.66% to 13.49.
The session closed with mixed sector performance but an overall negative headline figure for German equities, as indicated by the drop across the DAX, MDAX and TecDAX benchmarks.