FRANKFURT (dpa-AFX) - The Dax followed through on Friday's weakness at the start of the week as tensions in the Middle East weighed on sentiment. Shortly after the opening bell, the German benchmark index shed half a percent to 23,822 points. This brings it close to a support zone identified at 23,675 points by chart technician Martin Utschneider of broker Robomarkets. Overnight indications had even briefly dipped below that level.
Rising oil prices are once again dampening the market mood, fueled by escalating rhetoric between Iran and the United States. 'The clock is ticking for Iran, and they better move FAST, or there will be nothing left of them,' U.S. President Donald Trump wrote on the Truth Social platform. Meanwhile, U.S. ally Israel is already preparing for a potential resumption of joint strikes in Iran.
External cues also provided a headwind, as Middle East concerns weighed on Asian markets. In the U.S., the recent AI-driven rally took a breather on Friday, with indices closing below their levels at the time of the European market wrap.
The MDax, which tracks mid-cap stocks, fell more sharply than the Dax on Monday, dropping 1.13 percent to 31,008 points. The Eurozone's blue-chip EuroStoxx index traded 1 percent lower at 5,768 points./tih/stk
