Blue-chip DAX Index Falls; German Inflation Cools

12:48 PM EDT, 10/30/2026 (MT Newswires) -- German stocks were lower on Friday, with the blue-chip DAX index ending the session 0.85% in the red, after the release of the latest economic data from the eurozone's largest economy. Preliminary data from the Federal Statistical Office showed that Germany's annual inflation slowed to 2.8% in October from 3.3% in the prior month, behind the market forecast of 3%. The annual core inflation rate, which excludes food and energy prices, stood at 2.1%, down from the previous 2.4%. "For the ECB, today's German inflation data will comfort the doves as the numbers show that there are still no indirect or second-round effects in sight. If this situation remains unchanged, even a December rate hike might not be a done deal, yet. For the ECB to continue on what ECB President Christine Lagarde yesterday called 'the direction of travel is clear', some knock-on effects from higher energy prices would be useful," ING said in a quick take note. Meanwhile, provisional data from Destatis showed Germany's third-quarter gross domestic product ticked up 0.2% quarter over quarter, against a 0.3% increase in the previous three-month period and the expected 0.1% gain. While noting that rising energy costs and low water levels slowed Germany's third-quarter momentum, ifo's Head of Forecasts Timo Wollmershäuser expects the economic upturn to pick up by year-end and maintain its growth trajectory. On the jobs front, the federal agency Bundesagentur für Arbeit reported that Germany's unemployment rate held steady at 6.4% in October, as expected. The number of unemployed individuals in the country rose by 4,000, compared with the 12,000 increase earlier and the expected growth of 5,000. In corporate news, Bayer's (BAYN.F) Monsanto secured a unanimous Missouri jury victory rejecting design defect, fraud, and negligence claims in its first Roundup weedkiller trial since June's US Supreme Court ruling in its favor. The plaintiffs' failure-to-warn claims were excluded from the case entirely because the Supreme Court's decision had already preempted those allegations. The German life sciences company was the DAX's top stock, ending the trading week up 4.71%. Reaffirming its commitment to pursuing its standalone strategy, Evonik Industries (EVK.F) turned down a takeover offer from fellow German chemicals company BASF (BAS.F). While declining formal deal talks, the company noted it is open to a "purely informational and confidential" meeting to clarify its stance and listen to BASF's proposal. Evonik Industries fell 0.38%, while BASF gained 0.09%.