Stocks in 2025: The third strong year in a row

The 2025 stock market year has once again been very positive for most stock indices. The DAX, MDAX, and SDAX are each up around 20 percent shortly before closing. The major US indices have seen similarly strong gains in dollar terms, but these have been largely offset by the strong euro.

29 December 2025. FRANKFURT (Deutsche Börse). German blue chips are starting the last trading week of the current year with slight gains. On Monday morning, the DAX (DE0008469008) stood at 24,400 points, around 0.2 percent above its last closing price before the Christmas holidays. Since the beginning of the year, the index has generated a gain of over 22 percent. This continues the positive trend of recent years. The DAX also rose significantly in 2023 (up 20.3 percent) and 2024 (up 18.9 percent). By comparison, the average annual increase in value since the index was officially launched at the end of 1987 is “only” 11.2 percent.

Spain and Austria as outperformers

2025 was also a successful stock market year for the other indices in the DAX family. Mid-caps in the MDAX (DE0008467416) are up 19 percent since the beginning of the year, while small-caps in the SDAX (DE0009653386) are up 22 percent. The major European indices Euro Stoxx 50 (EU0009658145) and Stoxx Europe 600 (EU0009658202) also recorded double-digit price increases, gaining 16 and 18 percent respectively. At the country index level, the IBEX35 (ES0SI0000005) in Spain (up 48 percent) and the ATX (AT0000999982) in Austria (up 44 percent) performed particularly well.

Strong euro slows performance

The US technology index Nasdaq 100 (US6311011026) posted a gain of 22 percent, matching the performance of the DAX, while the broad-based S&P 500 (US78378X1072) rose by 18 percent. However, most investors in Germany recorded significantly lower gains on their investments in the US indices in 2025. This is due to the euro, which has appreciated by 15 percent against the US dollar since the beginning of the year, thereby reducing the performance of index trackers traded in euros. In 2024, the relatively weak euro at the time had proved to be an additional performance driver for these products.

Defense stocks more than doubled

Defense stocks were among the biggest winners on the German stock market this year. Three industry players, Renk Group (DE000RENK730), Rheinmetall (DE0007030009), and Hensoldt (DE000HAG0005), have more than doubled in value. In the HDAX composite index (DE0008469016), which currently comprises a good 100 stocks, a total of 13 stocks have achieved this this year, including Hochtief (DE0006070006), Nordex (DE000A0D6554) and Siemens Energy (DE000ENER6Y0). Among the losing stocks, Puma (DE0006969603) and Redcare Pharmacy (NL0012044747) performed particularly poorly, with share prices falling by 51 percent each.

SAP with high turnover and weak performance

The stocks with the highest turnover on the Frankfurt and Xetra stock exchanges this year were Rheinmetall and SAP (DE0007164600) by a wide margin. However, the software manufacturer, which was one of the top performers last year, was among the weaker stocks this time around, with a decline of 12 percent. Shares in Allianz (DE0008404005), Deutsche Telekom (DE0005557508), Siemens (DE0007236101) and Siemens Energy were also heavily traded.

Nvidia remains the absolute favorite

Among foreign stocks, which were in high demand especially in Frankfurt, Nvidia (US67066G1040) was once again the benchmark in terms of trading volume. Buoyed by AI euphoria, as in 2024, the chip specialist has increased its market value in US dollars by another 38 percent this year. In euros, the share price rose by “only” 19 percent. Shares in Chinese electric car specialist BYD (CNE100000296) and GDRs in Korean memory chip manufacturer SK Hynix (US78392B1070) were also in high demand in 2025. Only then do other representatives of the Magnificent 7 follow, such as Apple (US0378331005), Microsoft (US5949181045), and Amazon (US0231351067).

Trading on the German Stock Exchange at the turn of the year 2025/26:

• 30 December: shortened trading hours until 2 p.m.
• 31 December und 1 January 2026: closed
• 2 January 2026: regular trading