FRANKFURT (dpa-AFX) - At over 21,500 points, the DAX continued to push up its record high on Friday. The leading German index benefited from statements by US President Donald Trump, which gave some impetus to vague hopes of a less stringent tariff policy against China. Sectors that are heavily dependent on this country benefited from this. These include the automotive sector, for example.

However, the positive mood did not last long. At the close of trading, the Dax lost 0.08 percent to 21,394.93 points. The US stock market also took a breather after the recent series of gains. The weekly performance of the Dax was strong with growth of 2.4 percent. In the still young stock market year 2025, investors can look back on growth of 7.5%.

The MDax somewhat overshadowed the Dax on Friday with a rise of 0.61% to 26,108.46 points. Investors see pent-up demand here. The index of mid-sized German stocks had already failed to keep up with the Dax rally last year and is once again lagging behind the leading index in 2025.

With regard to the Dax, the question now arises as to how long the bull market will last. Investors are aware that the excellent start to the year cannot be continued with the same momentum, said market observer Andreas Lipkow. "Unfortunately, the question of how long a potential price consolidation will last cannot be answered at present." The companies' quarterly reports were still playing along and there were also more positive signs in the macroeconomic reports.

Trump moved the markets once again at the weekend. The new President of the United States portrayed tariffs as an instrument of power against China and said: "They don't want them and I'd rather not have to use them". According to market observer Jim Reid from Deutsche Bank, these are "off-the-cuff remarks" from Trump, but they gave investors some hope. "They have left the financial market feeling overnight that there is a scenario in which China escapes the worst of the tariff regime," he wrote./ajx/he