Germany’s stock market heavyweights increased their profits by an average of 17 percent in the second quarter compared to the previous year. However, not all companies in the DAX 40 participated in this development, as car manufacturers in particular were weak, according to an analysis by the auditing and consulting company EY.
The most profitable company was once again Deutsche Telekom AG, which generated an operating profit of six billion euros, ahead of Volkswagen (5.5 billion euros) and Mercedes (four billion euros). RWE and Rheinmetall made particularly strong gains. Bayer and Siemens Energy have now returned to profitability after losses in the same quarter last year.
“We are on the brink of a recession”
In terms of sales, the DAX companies only managed a small increase of 1.7 percent compared to the same period last year. In Europe, business developed more positively than in the other markets. In Asia, revenues even fell by five percent.
The chairman of the EY management board, Henrik Ahlers, speaks of “overall strong figures”. “We are on the brink of a recession in Germany. In addition, we see structural problems in many sectors such as overcapacity and a difficult cost situation.” However, many top German companies are very well positioned worldwide and some foreign markets still offer growth opportunities.
