Economy and Politics
Germany is the fourth largest economy in the world. and the economically most important pillar in Europe. We are export champions: Our cars, medications, football, Bavarian beer, and our highly specialized machines are globally known and popular.
In Germany, the share of the industry in gross value added is highest among all G7 countries at 22.9 percent. Germany, along with China and the USA, is one of the three largest exporting nations. In 2017, Germany exported goods worth 1.2 trillion euros. The export ratio was almost 40 percent, and in the industry, it was even over 50 percent.
The heart of the German economy beats in the medium-sized sector. This refers to companies with an annual turnover of less than 50 million euros and less than 500 employees. 99.6 percent of German companies are classified as small and medium-sized enterprises. Over 1,000 of them are so-called "hidden champions", often little-known world market leaders in the public eye.
The most important sectors of German companies are the well-known automotive industry, which provides a significant number of jobs in Germany. Under the umbrella of VW, there are also well-known brands such as Audi, Skoda, Seat, Sania, MAN, as well as high-end brands like Porsche, Bentley, and Lamborghini.
In addition, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, as well as technology and software companies are represented in the country's index. SAP and Infineon are among them.
In addition, there are significant pharmaceutical and chemical companies in the country. Well-known companies in this regard include Siemens, Fresenius, Bayer, Linde, and BASF.
The insurance and banking sector is represented here as well as utility companies and telecommunications conglomerates. A diverse range of industries awaits potential investors. However, Germany has unfortunately had remarkably few shareholders compared to the international average.
The largest companies
The largest publicly traded companies In Germany, according to market capitalization, SAP, Volkswagen, Siemens, Linde, and Allianz are the top companies. BioNTech, the biotechnology company based in Mainz, has gone public on the US stock exchange and is traded there. Linde and SAP are currently engaged in a neck-and-neck race for the top spot in the DAX index.
SAP is the world's largest provider of integrated software packages for development and distribution. Revenue is distributed among the various business areas as follows: The SAP program is an integrated standard software product for large, as well as small and medium-sized companies, to manage individual business areas.
Siemens AG is one of the world's leading providers of electrical and electronic devices. Revenue is distributed across the following segments: medical devices, medical imaging systems, laboratory diagnostics and hearing aid systems, as well as industrial equipment, automated production, assembly, logistics monitoring systems, and more.
Allianz is a publicly traded insurance conglomerate and one of the largest insurers in the world. Allianz provides a wide range of insurance products, financial services, and services to over 83 million customers in more than 70 countries. As the leading insurance company in Germany, Allianz offers property, life, and private health insurance all in one place.
Linde plc is a globally leading technology corporation active in the fields of industrial gases and engineering in over 100 countries. The company produces industrial gases, which are subsequently used in various sectors such as the energy sector, steel production, chemical processing, environmental protection, or medical therapies. In addition, the company's other activities include the planning and construction of industrial plants for process engineering projects as well as the production of plant components. Services such as engineering consulting, project management, personnel training, and customer service complement the portfolio.
The largest and most important trading venues.
The German benchmark index DAX (German Stock Index) includes the 40 most valuable listed stocks from Germany, thus representing the country's economy. Originally based on the values of the 30 most significant listed corporations, it was expanded to 40 corporations in September 2021.
The MDAX (Mid-Cap DAX) represents the following 50 most valuable companies. In the TecDAX, you will find the 30 most valuable technology stocks in Germany. All three together make up the HDAX, which contains approximately 100 stocks.
Performance of the indices
The index in Germany is the DAX. This was introduced on July 1, 1988, and continues the index of the stock exchange newspaper, which dates back to 1959. It was normalized to 1,000 index points on December 31, 1987. Currently, the DAX is well above 20,000 points.
Trading hours in Germany
In Germany, there are numerous stock exchanges and trading hours. The stock exchanges in Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Hamburg, Hanover, Düsseldorf, Berlin, and Munich, as well as Tradegate, another trading platform, are open from 08:00 - 22:00. The Xetra trading platform allows trading from 09:00 - 17:30.
A little out of the ordinary, Lang & Schwarz, well-known to the broker Trade Republic, "dances". Their opening hours are from 07:30 am to 11:00 pm. This allows for off-exchange trading here.
