German Stocks Erase Gains; Infineon Technologies, BMW Decline

By Stefanie Haxel

Aug. 14 (Bloomberg) -- German stocks erased earlier gains after a report showed U.S. consumer prices rose more than forecast in July. Infineon Technologies AG and Bayerische Motoren Werke AG led declines.

The benchmark DAX Index dropped 14.04, or 0.2 percent, to 6,408.15 as of 2:36 p.m. in Frankfurt after climbing as much as 0.9 percent. The HDAX Index of the country's 110 biggest companies slipped 0.2 percent to 3,362.85.

The consumer price index gained 0.8 percent, twice as much as anticipated, the Labor Department said today in Washington. The cost of living was up 5.6 percent in the year ended in July, the biggest jump in 17 years. So-called core prices, which exclude food and energy, also rose more than projected.

Infineon, Europe's second-largest maker of semiconductors, sank 21 cents, or 3.6 percent, to 5.69 euros. BMW, the world's biggest luxury carmaker, dropped 50 cents, or 1.7 percent, to 28.72 euros.

To contact the reporter on this story: Stefanie Haxel in Frankfurt at shaxel@bloomberg.net