Bayer shares rally due to Monsanto insolvency review, Dax near record high

The DAX remained close to its record high of just a few days ago on Friday. In early trading, the German benchmark index gained 0.6 percent to 23,826 points, while the MDAX also gained 0.6 percent at 29,992 points. The Eurozone benchmark index, the EuroStoxx 50, rose 0.3 percent to 5,428 points.

Despite mixed international trends, the German benchmark index thus approached the 23,911 points it had set as its record high at the beginning of the week following the trade deal between China and the US. The DAX increased its weekly gain to 1.4 percent on Friday, marking its fifth consecutive positive trading week. It has increased its annual gain, which was briefly leveled off in April, to almost 20 percent during this period.

In the SDAX , 1&1's share price exploded, soaring by more than 22 percent. The internet group United Internet plans to invest up to €300 million and increase its stake in its mobile phone subsidiary 1&1 from 80.8 to 90 percent. United Internet traded ex-dividend, with shares down 1.2 percent.

Investors on the US stock markets were on tenterhooks yesterday, Thursday. The major stock market indicators closed mixed. The Dow Jones US blue-chip index closed with a gain of 0.7 percent at 42,323 points. The broad-based S&P 500 gained 0.4 percent to 5,917 points, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 0.2 percent to 19,112 points.

Asia's stock markets ended a mixed week on a rather weak note on Friday. The euphoria surrounding the trade talks between the US and China quickly faded, and news of Japan's weak gross domestic product did anything but boost the markets. In Tokyo, the 225-stock Nikkei index fell 0.2 percent to 37,659 points, and the broader Topix also closed 0.2 percent lower at 2,734 points. The Shanghai Stock Exchange lost 0.6 percent to 3,361 points. The index of major companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen fell 0.6 percent to 3,882 points.

With the general recovery on the stock markets, Bitcoin has also made strong gains again. The most important cryptocurrency recently traded at $104,067 – not far from its all-time high of $109,110 from January. At its low in April, Bitcoin was briefly worth just under $75,000.

Oil prices stabilized after falling more than 2 percent overnight on news of a potential nuclear deal between the US and Iran, but are still up 1 percent for the week as the global economic outlook brightened.

On the commodity market, Brent crude oil from the North Sea rose by 0.3 percent to $64.69 per barrel (159 liters). US WTI crude oil was 0.3 percent higher at $61.78.