DAX Recovers After Falling to 5-Month Low

The DAX index has posted gains in the Wednesday session. Currently, the index is trading at 12,490.00, up 0.79% on the day. On the release front, German Industrial Production declined 0.6%, close to the estimate of -0.7%. This marked the third decline in four months. On Thursday, Germany releases Trade Balance.

It’s been a volatile week for global stock markets, and the DAX has not been immune. The index declined 4.2% last week, as a sharp decline in Deutsche Bank shares sent European stock markets lower on Friday. The slide continued this week, as strong US employment numbers raised concerns of higher inflation and additional rate hikes by the Federal Reserve. Higher US rates would be bad news for European stock markets, as investors would be attracted to dollar-denominated assets. US stock markets were in red territory on Monday, and the Dow Jones posted its biggest one-day loss ever. However, US stock markets rebounded on Tuesday and the trend has continued in the Asian and European markets on Wednesday.

US Secretary of Treasury Says He is Closely Following Financial Markets

Germany is close to forming a new government, as the socialist SDP and Angela Merkel’s conservatives are expected to announce an agreement later on Wednesday. Merkel has made major concessions in order to reach a deal, including giving the SDP the powerful finance ministry. This would likely mark a shift in Germany’s eurozone policy, which had been marked by a conservative stance under former finance minister Wolfgang Schaeuble. Members of the eurozone that have been struggling, such as Greece, will likely get a more sympathetic ear from the SDP than they did from Schauble. The coalition agreement still requires the consent of a majority of the 464,000 members of the SDP.

The German economy continues to shine, despite the ongoing coalition negotiations, which have dragged on since September. A spokesman for the SPD party, which is negotiating with Angela Merkel’s conservative bloc, said on Tuesday that a deal is “90-95%” done. For her part, Merkel has said that she is willing to make painful concessions in order to form a government. Both parties have stated that they want to reach an agreement on Tuesday. If there is an announcement later in the day, the euro could move higher.

 

Economic Calendar

Wednesday (February 7)

  • 2:00 German Industrial Production. Estimate -0.7%. Actual -0.6%
  • 5:33 German 10-year Bond Auction. Actual 0.69%
  • 6:30 EU Economic Forecasts

Thursday (February 8)

  • 2:00 German Trade Balance. Estimate 20.4B
  • 3:45 German Buba President Weidmann Speaks

*All release times are GMT

*Key events are in bold

 

DAX, Wednesday, February 7 at 7:45 EDT

Open: 12,490.50 High: 12,500.23 Low: 12,412.00 Close: 12,490.00

This article is for general information purposes only. It is not investment advice or a solution to buy or sell securities. Opinions are the authors; not necessarily that of OANDA Corporation or any of its affiliates, subsidiaries, officers or directors. Leveraged trading is high risk and not suitable for all. You could lose all of your deposited funds.

Kenny Fisher

Kenny Fisher

Market Analyst at OANDA
A highly experienced financial market analyst with a focus on fundamental and macroeconomic analysis, Kenny Fisher’s daily commentary covers a broad range of markets including forex, equities and commodities. His work has been published in major online financial publications including Investing.com, Seeking Alpha and FXStreet. Kenny has been a MarketPulse contributor since 2012.