FRANKFURT (dpa-AFX) - After Thursday's rebound, the Dax is expected to edge lower again on Friday. Broker IG estimated Germany's benchmark index to open 0.3 percent down at 24,130 points, two hours before trading began. With this weaker start, the Dax's weekly performance risks turning moderately negative again. However, for December, the blue-chip index remains up by more than one percent and boasts a year-to-date gain of over 21 percent.
Trading could become exciting again on Friday. "It is the largest and most important options expiry of the year," wrote market observer Thomas Altmann of QC Partners, referring to the expiration of contracts on stocks and indices at the derivatives exchanges. He sees the pivotal point at the 24,000 mark, which was temporarily breached recently. U.S. inflation data gave the Dax the necessary boost on Thursday to regain some cushion above this psychological threshold.
According to Altmann, this will also be "the last major trading day of the year," as the coming week is significantly shortened due to Christmas and many investors are expected to head off for the holidays. On the corporate side, Adidas, Puma, and DHL are in focus due to guidance from their U.S. competitors FedEx and Nike, who reported their figures after the close of U.S. markets the previous evening./tih/stk
