-- The blue-chip DAX index finished Friday's session flat at 0.01% in the red, as market watchers focused on the upcoming negotiations between the US and Iran.
Hopes for a regional cooling-off period and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz rose after Israel signaled a desire for talks with Lebanon. Tehran has highlighted Israel's ongoing military operations in Lebanon as a major hurdle in its broader ceasefire deal with Washington. The US and Iran are scheduled to hold closely watched negotiations in Pakistan on Saturday.
In local economic news, Destatis confirmed in its final data that Germany's annual inflation rate accelerated to 2.7% in March 2026 from 1.9% previously, marking its highest level since January 2024. The core rate, which excludes food and energy prices, was unchanged at 2.5%.
"The significant increase in the prices of energy products is driving up inflation. In particular, motor fuel and heating oil prices have risen sharply for consumers since the start of the Iran war," Federal Statistical Office President Ruth Brand said.
The conflict in the Middle East also impacted Germany's travel industry, according to the ifo Institute's latest business survey. The ifo business climate index for travel agencies and tour operators plunged to -41.7 points from -14.8 points, reflecting sharper pessimism regarding current conditions and future expectations.
Additionally, ifo noted that more travel agencies and tour operators are projecting higher costs for travel services in the coming months amid rising fuel costs. "An increase in the inflation rate is likely to strain the travel budgets of many vacationers as the year goes on," industry expert Patrick Höppner said.
On the corporate front, Nordex (NDX1.F) secured an order for 13 of its N175/6.X turbines for an undisclosed wind farm project in Spain. The deal includes an initial capacity of 80 megawatts, with an option to expand the total capacity to 120 megawatts. The German wind turbine manufacturer fell 0.39% on Xetra by the end of the trading day.
Meanwhile, tech stocks Siemens (SIE.F) and Infineon Technologies (IFX.F) were among the DAX's best performers, gaining by 1.32% and 1.03%, respectively, on the back of a better-than-expected first-quarter revenue for Taiwanese chipmaker TSMC amid increasing artificial intelligence-related demand.