Germany's DAX Index Closes Higher as ECB Holds Rates

12:48 PM EDT, 10/29/2026 (MT Newswires) -- German equities remained in the green on Thursday, with the blue-chip DAX index climbing 1.36% as the European Central Bank maintained its three key interest rates. In a widely expected move, the ECB kept the deposit facility rate at 2.50%, and the interest rates on the main refinancing operations and marginal lending facility at 2.65% and 2.90%, respectively, noting that inflation is still "broadly stable." "[A] pause after two rate hikes this year was expected, even if macro developments since the last meeting could have justified another rate hike. Headline inflation increased again in September and most leading indicators point to continued resilience in the eurozone economy. However, the surge in bond yields on the back of the French crisis is already imposing a new restrictive monetary policy stance. Or in other words, the bond market has taken over the ECB's job," ING noted. Ahead of the monetary policy meeting, Christine Lagarde confirmed that she will step down as the European Central Bank's president on Feb. 7, 2027, rather than serving through the end of her term in October 2027. In corporate news, adidas (ADS.F) gained 5.79% to top the blue-chip index, after reporting "record" revenue of 7.25 billion euros, up 9% year over year. The strong results prompted the German sportswear giant to bump up its full-year 2026 guidance. Expecting currency-neutral revenue growth of 9% to 10% to translate into higher profitability, adidas boosted its operating profit outlook to around 2.5 billion euros from around 2.3 billion euros previously. "This print confirms a continuation of trends observed in 1H26, namely strong revenue growth (+7% cFX) which is broad based across regions (all regions double digit) but narrow in terms of category and channel - with Apparel and DTC doing the heavy lifting, whilst Footwear and wholesale remain flattish given elevated inventory levels," RBC Capital Markets said in a quick take report. Meanwhile, Deutsche Telekom (DTE.F) is said to have halted plans to merge with its US subsidiary T-Mobile US after opposition from its works council, Bloomberg News reported, citing sources familiar with the matter. While the German telecommunications giant decided against submitting an immediate formal proposal, sources indicated a bid could still be reconsidered in the future. Deutsche Telekom ended the trading day 1.87% higher. On the geopolitical front, US Vice President JD Vance reportedly contacted Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, in an effort to restart peace talks, The Wall Street Journal wrote, citing officials and people familiar with the matter. Deutsche Bank Research noted that US President Donald Trump attempted to play down the report, clarifying that Vance's contact with Iran was centered on offering medical aid to Iran.