While in the morning the German leading index was still on the way to its latest all-time high of 18,015 points, it later lost strength. At the end of the Xetra it fell 0.02 percent to 17,932.68 points. This time the price increases in the US stock markets did not help the prices here. The MDax of German medium-sized companies increased by 0.3 percent to 26,136.35 points.
Ahead of this week's central bank meetings, many investors preferred to stay on the sidelines, according to financial market expert Andreas Lipkow. There is currently a lack of impulses outside the world of central banks, which is why the price range above 18,000 points on the DAX is still too high a level.
Central bank interest rate decisions pending
Interest rate decisions by the central banks of the US, Britain, Japan and Switzerland will be on the agenda in the coming days. The focus is mainly on the US Federal Reserve on Wednesday night. Maintaining the current key interest rate is considered a foregone conclusion. More important for investors should be indications about the timing of the long-awaited change of course in monetary policy.
Recent US inflation data had already cooled speculation about a possible first interest rate cut ahead of the June meeting. In the financial markets there are now even doubts about a reduction in interest rates in June.
Rheinmetall soars to a record
At the top of the DAX, shares of the defense company Rheinmetall closed on Monday with a record high of 477.10 euros and an increase of 4.4 percent. More and more analysts are increasing their target prices to exceed 500 euros.
The reinsurer Hannover Re made a record profit last year and wants to distribute much more money to its shareholders. The insurance group Talanx (HDI), which owns more than half of Hannover Re's shares, especially benefits from this. Hannover Re rose to another all-time high on Monday, but closed down 0.1 percent. Talanx fell 1.8 percent on the MDax, having hit a high on Friday.
Vonovia managed to stabilize
Vonovia stabilized: after Friday's double-digit share price drop, a 3.1 percent increase was enough to take one of the top spots on the Dax. Before the weekend, the real estate group had scared investors with a new dividend policy and modified key indicators.
The eurozone's leading index, EuroStoxx 50, fell 0.07 percent to 4,982.76 points on Monday. The Cac 40 in Paris closed slightly weaker, the FTSE 100 in London barely changed. In New York, the main barometer Dow Jones Industrial rose slightly at the close of the European stock market and the technology-heavy Nasdaq 100 index recovered significantly.
The euro cost $1.0871 after the market closed. In the afternoon, the European Central Bank (ECB) set the reference exchange rate at 1.0892 dollars (Friday: 1.0892). Therefore, the dollar costs 0.9181 (0.9181) euros.
In the bond market, the current yield rose from 2.49 percent on Friday to 2.51 percent. The Rex bond index fell 0.10 percent to 124.55 points. The Bund future fell 0.20 percent to 131.67 points.