Market report
Status: 08/17/2021 1:44 p.m.
The losses at DAX & Co. have become significantly smaller by noon. Some investors are apparently using the lower prices to get started again. However, some uncertainties remain.
With almost 15,900 points, the German stock market index has almost completely contained the losses by the halfway point of today’s trading. After an initial price slide, which is mainly due to the situation in Afghanistan, the first bargain hunters are already appearing on the stock markets.
However, growth concerns persist after weak economic data from China yesterday. The example of New Zealand, where a lockdown was imposed again after a new case of infection, shows that the corona pandemic can cause bad news at any time.
The stock exchanges in New York should just start trading. This is currently indicated by the US futures. Investors on Wall Street are now waiting for business figures from US retail giant Walmart. In the afternoon, important US economic data are on the agenda with retail sales and industrial production. And in the evening, statements by US Federal Reserve chief Jerome Powell could provide clues about the possible reduction in supportive asset purchases by the Fed expected by the market.
Euro stable, Bitcoin rising
The euro is now stable again against the US dollar at 1.1768 dollars. Oil prices are currently not moving, the price losses of the past trading days seem to have stopped for the time being. A barrel (159 liters) of North Sea Brent costs US $ 69.50. The troy ounce of gold is priced at $ 1,786. Contrary to the general trend on the stock markets, cyber currencies are increasing, especially Bitcoin. The most important cryptocurrency rose 1.6 percent to $ 46,700 at noon. Ethereum is also becoming more expensive by around two percent.
Euro economy is growing
The economy in the euro zone picked up significantly in the spring. The gross domestic product (GDP) rose from April to June by 2.0 percent compared to the previous quarter, according to the Eurostat statistics office, which confirmed an estimate from the end of July. At the beginning of 2021 the economy had shrunk by 0.3 percent, and by the end of 2020 by as much as 0.6 percent. The German economy grew by 1.5 percent in the spring and the Dutch economy grew by 3.1 percent, twice as fast as expected.
Delivery Hero down and up
The stock of the DAX newcomer Delivery Hero made an ascent and descent in the morning. Initially, the title sank by more than three percent into the red, at times it was one of the biggest winners in the index. The papers respond to numbers from competitor Just Eat Takeaway. Its expansion course pulled the Dutch food delivery service deep into the red in the first half of the year. The company spent a lot on advertising. Delivery Hero itself had sobered investors just a few days ago with a lowered margin target.
BHP gets out of oil business
One of the world’s largest raw material companies wants to turn its back on fossil fuels. The Australian group BHP is separating from its oil and gas business and wants to merge the Woodside Petroleum division. After the transaction is complete, the BHP shareholders will hold around 48 percent of Woodside, it said. In the wake of the climate crisis, investors are increasing the pressure on mining and oil companies to cut such businesses. At the same time, the company plans to invest around 5.7 billion US dollars (about 4.85 billion euros) in a new fertilizer mine in Canada. The share is currently up around ten percent, also due to good business figures.
K + S under pressure
In response to BHP’s change of strategy and its investments in the potash business, shares in the German potash and fertilizer producer K + S lost more than three percent. Market watchers see the stock heading for a multi-month low.
Hacker at T-Mobile US
T-Mobile US, a subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom, has been the victim of a cyber attack. The attackers had gained access to “some data”, announced the mobile operator in the night. At the same time, it has not yet been possible to determine that personal customer information is also affected. The website “Motherboard” had written at the weekend that data from more than 100 million people were offered on the Internet, which according to the seller came from the company’s servers. T-Mobile US was convinced that the gateway for the attackers had meanwhile been closed.
Ströer wants to leave the crisis behind
In the advertising market, sales are rising again: the advertising marketer recorded a 42 percent increase in sales to 374 million euros in the second quarter, and adjusted operating income (Ebitda) climbed from 55 to 107 million euros. In particular, the outdoor advertising business has recovered very quickly and is back at the pre-Corona level by the middle of the year. Ströer expects further growth in the third quarter.
Zooplus in the pet boom
The pet supply retailer Zooplus is benefiting from the pet boom in the corona crisis. Sales rose in the first half of the year by 16 percent to one billion euros. The operating result increased by 13 percent to 42.2 million euros. “The first half of the year has shown that the number of pets continues to rise and the switch to the online channel is gaining momentum in all major European markets,” said CEO Cornelius Patt. For 2021, Zooplus expects revenues between 2.04 and 2.14 billion euros and an Ebitda between 40 and 80 million euros. Zooplus is about to be taken over by the US financial investor Hellman & Friedman. Just last week he announced the takeover for almost three billion euros.
Blue Origin is suing US government
The space company Blue Origin of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has sued the US government over a billion dollar contract with the competitor SpaceX from Tesla founder Elon Musk. As announced by Blue Origin, “errors” in the award procedure for the new lunar module of the space agency NASA are to be corrected with the lawsuit. NASA awarded the $ 2.9 billion contract to SpaceX in April. Blue Origin had already protested violently against NASA’s decision immediately after the award to SpaceX and, among other things, lodged a complaint with the US audit office.