The DAX has posted gains in the Wednesday session. Currently, the index is at 13,057.00 up 0.46% on the day. On the release front, there are no major indicators out of the eurozone. Earlier in the day, ECB President Mario Draghi spoke at an ECB conference in Frankfurt. Draghi discussed structural reforms in the eurozone economy, but did not address monetary policy. Later in the day, Germany releases the yield on 10-Year bonds.
European stock markets have started the Wednesday session with gains, as European corporate earnings for the third quarter begin to roll in. Earnings for Q3 are expected to be 4.5 percent higher compared to Q3 in 2016, and most of the companies on the DAX are showing gains on Wednesday. However, financial stocks are showing little movement, led by Commerzbank (DE:CBKG) and Deutschebank, which are almost unchanged.
Investors are pleased with the robust Germany economy, but the markets overestimated investor optimism, as German ZEW Economic Sentiment for October missed expectations. Analysts had forecast a surge in investor confidence, which did not materialize. Still, the indicator did improve slightly to 17.6 points, marking a 4-month high. Eurozone ZEW Economic Sentiment disappointed, slowing to 26.7 and also missing expectations. On the inflation front, there were no surprises as Eurozone Final CPI remained steady at 1.5 percent. With the rebound of the eurozone in 2017, inflation has moved higher, but still remains below the ECB’s target of around 2 percent.
Economic Calendar
Wednesday (October 18)
- 4:10 ECB President Mario Draghi Speaks
- Tentative – German 30-year Bond Auction
*All release times are GMT
*Key events are in bold
DAX, Wednesday, October 18 at 6:40 EDT
Open: 13,020.00 High: 13,059.50 Low: 13,005.50 Close: 13,057.00
