German stocks experienced a significant decline on Monday morning, primarily attributed to substantial losses in the technology sector due to earnings concerns. This followed the rise of China's budget-friendly startup, DeepSeek, as an influential AI model.
Investors are particularly focused on upcoming policy announcements from the Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank this week, expressing concerns over growth prospects and international trade amid U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff threats.
The DAX 30 index, having dropped to a low of 21,109.66, showed a decrease of 214.44 points, approximately 1%, and was recently recorded at 21,171.18.
Siemens Energy saw a steep decline of 17%, being a major supplier of electrical equipment for AI infrastructure.
Infineon experienced a 4.4% drop, while Siemens declined by around 4%. Rheinmetall fell by 3%, with SAP decreasing by 1.6%. Companies like HeidelbergCement, Puma, and MTU Aero Engines recorded decreases ranging from 0.6% to 1.1%.
Conversely, Vonovia, E.ON, Hannover Rueck, Volkswagen, Deutsche Telekom, Symrise, Allianz, Munich RE, Qiagen, Zalando, and Continental reported gains between 1% and 2%.
Additionally, Beiersdorf, Porsche, Henkel, Fresenius, and Bayer saw significant gains.
According to a report by the Ifo Institute, Germany's business climate indicator slightly increased to 85.1 in January from 84.7 in December. The measure of current conditions rose to 86.1 from 85.1, surpassing forecasts of 85.4, while the business expectations sub-index dipped slightly to 84.2 from 84.4, aligning with predictions. The Ifo President noted improvements in the services sector, ongoing declines in manufacturing, and continued stagnation in the German economy.
