Just two trading days after its collapse, the DAX was back on the hunt for records. At times it was only 60 points away from its record high of 26,692 points last Thursday. At the end of trading, the leading index still had an increase of 0.3 percent to 26,347 points.
At the beginning of the week, the DAX had already closed with an increase of 1.7 percent to 26,267 points. Some analysts viewed last week's selloff as an overreaction. However, other experts urged caution. “The moment of truth is yet to come when it comes to trading AI stocks,” said Ted Parkhill, head of asset manager Incline.
The market received support today primarily from falling oil prices. Brent North Sea oil cost just $90 per barrel at times, but rose slightly again in the evening.
Statements from US President Donald Trump helped to ease tensions. Trump said he does not currently believe military action against Iran is necessary. In his opinion, the conflict with Tehran will end “fairly soon.”
However, the current inflation data from the USA had a disruptive effect. In October, consumer prices rose by 0.4 percent compared to the previous month. Economists had expected an increase of 0.3 percent on average. No annual inflation rate will be announced for October. Because a year ago, government agencies were closed due to the shutdown and no data was collected.
Robust inflation reinforces expectations that the Federal Reserve (Fed) will raise interest rates in December. This in turn also strengthens doubts about the AI boom. Because higher interest rates make the debt that companies in the industry have taken on for their enormous investments more expensive.
The US stock markets are trending somewhat weaker in this environment. Both the standard stocks on the Dow Jones and the technology stocks on the Nasdaq gave up part of their previous day's gains.
Nvidia boss Jensen Huang's affair with a suspected Chinese spy reaches a new dimension. Through her relationship with the co-founder of the world's largest chip company, the woman smuggled AI high-performance processors worth $7.5 billion into the People's Republic, the news portal "The Information" reported, citing two of the suspects' acquaintances.
This raises doubts as to whether Huang can hold on to the top job. With him, Nvidia would lose its central identification figure. "Jensen is a core part of Nvidia's fabric and an important part of its success," said Dan Ives of Yorkville Ives & Co.
The planned IPO of the chatbot operator Anthropic is also being affected by the current shaky industry mood. A total valuation of up to one trillion dollars is targeted. This is well below the possible valuation previously discussed on the market. “The disillusionment with AI continues,” said one trader.
However, Infineon cannot see an end to the AI boom: After a jump in sales and profits, the chip manufacturer expects significantly increasing growth in the 2026/27 financial year. The company continues to benefit from high demand for power chips for AI data centers. “Infineon closed the 2026 financial year with another record quarter,” says CEO Jochen Hanebeck. We are now starting the new financial year “with continued strong momentum”.
The best DAX stock was the Henkel preferred share. It reached its highest level in a year and a half. The consumer goods manufacturer confirmed its annual targets, which were adjusted at the end of October. The quarterly figures are very strong and the details now published underline the impressive development, said analysts at Bernstein Research.
Bayer has received approval for its new blood thinner Asundexian in the important US market. The FDA approved the drug to prevent recurrent strokes. Jefferies analysts viewed the approval as an important step towards minimizing risk in Bayer's pharmaceutical pipeline. Deutsche Bank raised its price target for the shares from 60 to 65 euros.
