DAX Eases Off Early Gains, Dips as Auto Stocks Slide

Dax Futures

Following a strong opening and a slight upward movement, DAX fell into negative territory on Wednesday as investors adopted a cautious stance, processing the latest economic data from the region while anticipating new information later in the week.

Automobile equities exhibited a lackluster performance. Defense stocks demonstrated notable resilience following reports indicating that Germany’s parliament is poised to sanction over 50 billion euros in military acquisitions. The DAX commenced at 20,176.32, climbed to 24,193.82, and then retreated to 20,048.78 thereafter. The index recorded a value of 24,074.61, reflecting a decline of 12.72 points, equivalent to a decrease of 0.05%.

  • Volkswagen experienced a decline of 2.1%. BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Porsche Automobil Holding experienced declines ranging from 1.1% to 1.4%.
  • Merck experienced a decline of 1.7%, whereas Adidas, Deutsche Post, Heidelberg Materials, Siemens, Henkel, and BASF saw losses ranging from 1% to 1.25%.
  • E.ON experienced an increase of 2.2%.
  • Rheinmetall experienced an increase of nearly 2%, whereas Commerzbank and Siemens Energy saw gains of 1.5% and 1.4%, respectively.
  • Fresenius, RWE, Deutsche Bank, Vonovia, Allianz, Bayer, and Deutsche Telekom experienced gains ranging from 0.5% to 1%.

In economic news, a report from the Ifo Institute indicated that the Business Climate Index for Germany fell to 87.6 in December 2025, marking the lowest level in seven months, down from a downwardly revised 88 in November and below forecasts of 88.2. The expectations gauge declined to 89.7 from 90.5, whereas evaluations of current conditions remained unchanged at 85.6.

Data indicated that the annual inflation rate in the Eurozone was adjusted downward to 2.1% in November 2025, a revision from the preliminary figure of 2.2%, aligning with the reading from October. In the interim, the CPI experienced a decrease of 0.3% compared to the prior month, marking the first reduction since January and aligning with anticipated projections. The annual core inflation rate remained stable at 2.4% for the second consecutive month.