DAC Rises On Fairly Encouraging Economic Data, Up Nearliy 0.5% At Noon

(RTTNews) - After a weak start, the German stock market moved higher Monday morning with a few counters attracting some buying interest. The mood in the market remained a bit cautious though as investors looked ahead to the monetary policy announcement from the European Central Bank.

Geopolitical concerns continue to linger following Iran warning of an escalation in tension in the event of an attack by the U.S.

Commodity-related stocks were under pressure, weighed down by weak metal and energy prices.

The benchmark DAX, which dropped to 24,339.16 in early trades, was up 101.21 points or 0.41% at 24,616.94 a few minutes before noon.

Adidas moved up nearly 2.3% and Hannover Rueck climbed 2%. Deutsche Telekom and Allianz gained 1.85% and 1.7%, respectively. Fresenius moved up 1.4%.

Gea Group, Munich RE, SAP, Henkel and Commerzbank gained 1 to 1.15%. E.ON, Fresenius Medical Care, Heidelberg Materials, Beiersdorf and Mercedes-Benz posted modest gains.

Rheinmetall, Brenntag, Infineon Technologies and Siemens Energy lost 1 to 1.7%. Symrise drifted down 0.7%., Deutsche Bank, Bayer and Volkswagen declined marginally.

Data from Destats showed German's retail sales rose 0.1% on a monthly basis in December, reversing November's 0.5% drop. Sales were forecast to grow 0.1%. On a yearly basis, retail sales posted an annual growth of 1.5% compared to an increase of 1.3% in November.

The euro area manufacturing activity shrank at a slower pace in January as production returned to growth, final survey results from S&P Global showed. The final HCOB manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index rose to 49.5 in January from a nine-month low of 48.8 in December. The flash reading was 49.4.

The score has remained below 50.0 for the third successive month in January indicating contraction in the sector.

Germany's manufacturing activity continued to contract for 43 straight months in January. However, the final factory PMI rose to a three-month high of 49.1 in January from 47.0 in December as output returned to growth after a brief contraction in December. The initial PMI score for January was 48.7.