BRUSSELS (dpa-AFX) - German stock market's benchmark index DAX moved up sharply Thursday morning amid fading concerns about trade war as U.S. President Donald Trump dropped planned tariffs on eight European countries and ruled out using force to take Greenland.
'We probably won't get anything unless I decide to use excessive strength and force, where we would be, frankly, unstoppable. But I won't do that. Okay?' Trump said in his speech at the World Economic Froum in Davos, Switzerland on Wednesday.
Rather than using military force, Trump called for 'immediate negotiations' with Denmark to 'discuss the acquisition of Greenland by the United States.'
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said he had a very productive meeting with Trump on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos on how NATO ?allies can ?work collectively to ensure Arctic ?security, including not just Greenland but the seven NATO nations with land in the Arctic.
Auto stocks rallied sharply, contributing significantly to market's strong upside.
The DAX was up 299.34 points or 1.22% at 24,877.15 at noon.
Volkswagen, Europe's largest carmaker, soared 5.2% after reporting stronger than expected cash flow for the financial year 2025.
Porsche Automobil Holding gained 2.7%, BMW and Mercedes-Benz both gained about 1.5%, and Daimler Truck Holding advanced nearly 1%.
Deutsche Boerse moved up more than 3% after announcing a record $5.3 billion deal to acquire Amsterdam-listed fund trading platform Allfunds, aiming to bolster its position in Europe's investment fund market.
Infineon Technologies climbed 4.3%. Siemens Energy, Deutsche Bank, Heidelberg Materials, Deutsche Telekom, Continental and Zalando gained 2 to 3.5%.
Bayer climbed 2.7% after announcing that its investigational cell therapy, OpCT-001, has received Orphan Drug Designation from the FDA for treating retinitis pigmentosa.
Merck, Scout24, RWE, Siemens, Qiagen, Commerzbank, Munich RE, MTU Aero Engines, Hannover Rueck, Allianz, Siemens Healthineers and E.ON also moved up sharply.
Rheinmetall declined 2.25% and SAP drifted lower by about 1.2%.
Investors awaited the release of the monetary policy meeting minutes from the European Central Bank. After the meeting held on December 17 & 18, the ECB governing council maintained its key deposit rate at 2%.
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