DE40: German index in continuous consolidation 💡

European stock indices are posting moderate gains during Tuesday's trading session. DE40 contracts are currently up more than 0.05%, while EU50 is adding 0.3%. On the data front, investors' attention will be focused today on PMI data and Powell's speech. 

In September, German economic activity grew at its fastest pace in 16 months, with the HCOB Flash Germany Composite PMI rising to 52.4, mainly due to a strong recovery in the services sector. Despite this growth, new orders fell in both the manufacturing and services sectors, reflecting weak demand and leading to a further decline in employment, which fell for the sixteenth month in a row. Inflationary pressure increased slightly, with input and output prices rising at their fastest pace in several months, particularly in the service sector. Business expectations for the coming year weakened again, falling below the long-term average, as companies cited economic uncertainty, high costs, and weak demand as the main reasons for concern. Although the economy is growing overall, the lack of new orders and weakened confidence suggest that the current momentum may not be sustained in the coming months.

Volatility is currently being observed in the broader European market. Source: xStation

The German DE40 index is gaining 0.11% during today's session and is once again attempting to break above the support zone marked by the 100-day exponential moving average (purple curve on the chart). As long as the DE40 remains above these zones, the overall upward trend (medium-term) remains sustainable in the long term. The RSI for the last 14 days is quoted at levels close to 46 points, which may indicate that the current quotations remain relatively close to the average dynamics of the last 14 sessions. However, it is important to note that the 50-day EMA is tilting downward, which may indicate that the short-term trend has changed to downward. Source: xStation

Company news

RBC Capital downgraded its recommendation for Mercedes-Benz (MBG.DE) from “Outperform” to “Sector Perform” and lowered its target price from EUR 63 to EUR 55. The reasons for this are concerns about the company's position vis-à-vis US tariffs and the deteriorating market situation in China. Despite this, the company's shares are up 0.8% today

Kingfisher (KGF.UK) posted strong results for the first half of the year, with pre-tax profits of £368 million, up approximately 10% year-on-year, and sales up 0.8% to £6.81 billion. The company raised its full-year guidance to the upper end of its previous range and accelerated its £300 million share buyback program, which it expects to complete by March 2026. The results were supported by an increase in gross margin, strong sales in channels such as B&Q and Screwfix, and effective cost control, despite uncertain market conditions and mixed consumer sentiment. The company's shares are up 17% today.

The company's shares are trading today at their highest levels since July this year.

Source: xStation

ASM International (ASM.NL) confirmed its revenue forecast for the third quarter at -5% to zero and lowered its forecasts for the second half of the year due to lower-than-expected demand for advanced logic and foundry technologies. The full-year revenue forecast has been revised downwards to the lower end of the growth range of +10-20% y/y, from the previous forecast indicating a mid-point of +10-20% y/y. The company's shares are currently down 1.25%.