Market report
Status: 23.08.2021 09:50 a.m.
In the markets, risk is once again the trump card. The DAX rises above 15,900 points at the beginning of the week, oil prices are rising – and Bitcoin costs more than $ 50,000 for the first time since May.
Investors have shed their reluctance of the past week and are again taking more risks. This is reflected in the financial markets in all asset classes: Neither bonds nor the “safe haven” dollar are in demand; instead, stocks, commodities and cryptocurrencies are rising.
The DAX made a leap up at the start of trading. At the start, the German standard values gain 0.8 percent to 15,930 points. This means that only 100 points separate the DAX from its record high (16,030 points). Apparently, some investors are taking advantage of the lower prices to re-enter.
In the past week, the DAX temporarily dipped to 15,622 points, but at the weekly closing price it had regained the important mark of 15,800 points and thus created the technical prerequisites for further price gains.
Are you worried about tapering?
Voices from the ranks of the US Federal Reserve that in view of the rampant delta variant of the coronavirus a hasty tightening of the monetary policy reins should be reconsidered, support the courses.
In the previous week, investors had fears that the Federal Reserve (Fed) could turn off the money in September and begin “tapering”, pushing share prices into the basement. “Tapering” is the term used on the stock exchange to describe the shutdown of extensive bond purchases by the central bank.
Wall Street is a tailwind for the DAX. There, fading concerns about an imminent reduction in bond purchases helped the major indices to gain prices on Friday. The Dow Jones index of standard values closed 0.7 percent higher to 35,120 points. The technology-heavy Nasdaq advanced 1.2 percent to 14,714 points. The broad S&P 500 gained 0.8 percent to 4441 points.
Thanks to the positive guidance from Wall Street, the Asian stock exchanges were able to leave the lows of last week behind them. There was also reassuring news for investors from China – for the first time since July, no locally transmitted Covid-19 cases were reported there.
The Nikkei Index, which comprises 225 values, was 1.8 percent higher at 27,494 points at the close of trading in Tokyo. The Shanghai Stock Exchange gained 1.5 percent to 3,478 points.
Another indication of the newly awakening appetite for risk among investors are the rising prices on the crypto markets. For the first time since May, a Bitcoin costs more than $ 50,000. Since the interim low in mid-July, the price gains of the very strongly fluctuating cryptocurrency have now totaled almost three quarters. According to the Coinmarketcap website, the total value of all cryptocurrencies is now back over two trillion dollars.
At the beginning of the week, an announcement by PayPal provides a tailwind on the crypto market: The US payment service provider will also be introducing the purchase, sale and ownership of cryptocurrency in Great Britain this week. The new offer should help people in Great Britain to “explore” cryptocurrencies. US customers of PayPal have been able to use digital currencies since March.
The declining risk aversion of investors is meanwhile also being reflected in the foreign exchange market. The “safe haven” US dollar is a little less in demand and is giving way across the board. The euro also benefits from this: The European common currency gains 0.1 percent to 1.1711 dollars.
The falling dollar is also giving the gold price a tailwind. The price of an ounce of the yellow precious metal increases 0.3 percent to $ 1,786.
The positive virus news from China and the rising stock markets are fueling the oil markets. The price of a barrel (159 liters) of the North Sea variety Brent increases 1.3 percent to 66.40 dollars. For a barrel of the US WTI variety, $ 63.29, 1.7 percent more than on Friday, is called.
Last week, oil prices fell to their lowest level since May. Above all, the strong dollar had weighed on the prices for WTI and Brent, making oil more expensive in countries outside the dollar area and thus dampening demand.
The last pressurized auto stocks in the DAX celebrate a small comeback at the beginning of the week. Papers from the car manufacturers BMW, Daimler and VW are among the biggest DAX winners in early trading. In the previous week, a report about an impending production cut at the Japanese car maker Toyota because of the shortage of semiconductors had burdened the auto industry.
The truck manufacturer Daimler Truck is confident that it will overcome conventional diesel technology for trucks in the EU faster than the political target. It is possible “that by 2030 we will achieve a share of 40, 50 or 60 percent of CO2-neutral battery or fuel cell trucks in our sales in the EU,” said Technology Director Andreas Gorbach.
The leasing company Grenke is selling its 25 percent minority stake in the fintech company Viafintech. The share goes to the Austrian Paysafecard.com prepaid cards at a price in the lower double-digit million euro range, said Grenke. With the completion of the transaction, the group profit will “increase extraordinarily within the next few months”.
The US drug agency FDA wants to fully approve the corona vaccine from Pfizer / BioNTech from today, as reported by the “New York Times”. So far, the vaccine has only had an emergency approval in the United States. The US government promises a vaccination boost from full approval. After all, employers, hospitals and educational institutions link compulsory vaccinations for their employees, visitors and students to such a final approval.
The debacle over the risk of fire in electric vehicles of the Chevrolet Bolt EV type is becoming increasingly expensive for the largest US automaker General Motors (GM). The company announced that all Bolt EV models must now be recalled – including those of the latest vintages. The manufacturer put the additional costs at around one billion dollars. The majority of the affected vehicles were sold in the United States, the remainder in Canada.