FRANKFURT (dpa-AFX) - Economic worries and the geopolitical situation continue to make investors on the German stock market cautious. Nevertheless, the Dax, which remains at a high level, was able to hold the 19,000-point mark on Tuesday. At the end of trading, it stood at 19,066.47 points, 0.20 percent below the previous day's close.

The MDax of medium-sized companies lost 0.43 percent to 26,624.52 points. The EuroStoxx 50, the leading eurozone index, fell 0.42 percent to 4,949.00 points.

The strong US labor market data from last Friday unsettled investors as it called into question expectations regarding the future monetary policy of the US Federal Reserve, said analyst Jochen Stanzl from broker CMC Markets. Following the data, hopes of further significant interest rate cuts before the end of the year faded. US inflation data later in the week will therefore be important.

According to Stanzl, more cautious statements from the Chinese government on new economic measures are also weighing on share prices, as is the geopolitical situation in the Middle East.

In this environment, particularly economically sensitive sectors came under pressure, especially automotive, chemical and steel stocks. The shares of Porsche AG were at the bottom of the Dax with a drop of 4 percent. Shares in the chemical company BASF fared little better, falling by 3.6 percent.

In contrast, shares in companies that are considered to be defensive were in demand. Hannover Re and Munich Re each gained almost one and a half percent. The fact that another dangerous hurricane hit parts of the USA and Mexico just a week and a half after a severe storm left investors cold for the time being. Shares in the utility company Eon and the software group SAP also recorded price gains.

In the MDax, shares in Delivery Hero continued their recovery. With a plus of a good 4 percent, they reached their highest level for 14 months. Borsianer referred to the capital market day of the subsidiary Talabat, in which the business in the Middle East and North Africa is bundled. The market has so far been expecting a market value of around 20 billion US dollars for this subsidiary and this seems only logical with the figures, said one Borsianer. Talabat is expected to go public on the Dubai stock exchange in the fourth quarter.

Shares in Redcare Pharmacy lost 1.8 percent. Under the title "Is Redcare going after DocMorris?", "Apotheke Adhoc" reported on speculation on the stock exchange that Redcare could sooner or later acquire its Swiss competitor DocMorris. DocMorris shares, on the other hand, were in demand in Zurich.

The euro again showed little movement and last traded at 1.0965 US dollars. The European Central Bank set the reference rate at 1.0982 (Monday: 1.0982) dollars. The dollar thus cost 0.9105 (0.9105) euros.

On the German bond market, the current yield remained at 2.23 percent. The Rex bond index rose by 0.08 percent to 126.49 points. The Bund future lost 0.05 percent to 133.53 points./mis/he

--- By Michael Schilling, dpa-AFX ---