German Stocks Rise, Led by Steelmakers; Lufthansa, TUI Decline

By Stefanie Haxel and Daniela Silberstein

Aug. 20 (Bloomberg) -- German stocks gained as higher nickel prices lifted steel companies and better-than-estimated earnings from Hewlett-Packard Co. boosted technology shares.

ThyssenKrupp AG and Salzgitter AG, the country's two largest steelmakers, increased more than 3 percent. Kloeckner & Co., a trader of the metal, rallied the most in three weeks. Infineon Technologies AG, Europe's second-largest chipmaker, and Aixtron AG also advanced. Deutsche Lufthansa AG, Europe's second-largest airline, led falling shares as crude oil gained.

The benchmark DAX Index added 20.95, or 0.3 percent, to 6,303.38 as of 3:22 p.m. in Frankfurt. DAX futures expiring in September climbed 0.4 percent. The HDAX Index of the country's 110 biggest companies increased 0.4 percent.

``Investors were worried in the last few weeks that the falling nickel price might hurt Kloeckner's earnings,'' said Marc Gabriel, an analyst with Bankhaus Lampe KG. ``Now nickel prices look like they will rise, which means the problem doesn't look so big.'' He has a ``buy'' recommendation for shares of Kloeckner and Salzgitter.

Nickel, used to make stainless steel, rose for a second day in London after Xstrata Plc, the world's fourth-largest producer of the metal, suspended production in the Dominican Republic to bolster prices.

ThyssenKrupp, Germany's biggest steelmaker, advanced 1.25 euros, or 3.8 percent, to 34.17 euros. Salzgitter, the second- largest, climbed 3.02 euros, or 3 percent, to 103.87. Kloeckner surged 1.32 euros, or 5 percent, to 27.99.

Hewlett-Packard

Infineon added 5.5 cents, or 1 percent, to 5.615 euros. Aixtron, a maker of machines to coat semiconductors, climbed 17 cents, or 2.5 percent, to 7.09 euros.

Hewlett-Packard, the world's biggest personal-computer maker, said orders in Europe and Asia helped fuel a 14 percent jump in profit. The company's fourth-quarter earnings forecast also beat analysts' projections.

Deutsche Boerse AG, operator of the Frankfurt exchange, rose for the first time in four days, adding 1.46 euros, or 2.4 percent, to 62.05 euros.

Commodity regulators granted permission for the sale of Eurex Deutschland futures contracts based on Swiss and European markets in the U.S. Eurex is a derivates market jointly owned by Deutsche Boerse and Swiss Financial Market Services AG.

Deutsche Postbank AG, the country's largest consumer bank by clients, advanced 61 cents, or 1.5 percent, to 40.62 euros.

Decision on Sale

Parent Deutsche Post AG plans to decide by the beginning of October at the latest whether to sell its banking unit, Financial Times Deutschland reported, without saying how it got the information. Post shares added 26 cents, or 1.7 percent, to 15.27 euros.

Lufthansa dropped 19 cents, or 1.3 percent, to 14.27 euros. Crude oil gained for a second day before a weekly U.S. government report on stockpiles that may show gasoline supplies shrank for a fourth week in the world's largest energy user.

TUI AG declined 21 cents, or 1.5 percent, to 13.59 euros. Dresdner Kleinwort cut its share-price estimate for Europe's largest travel company by 6.9 percent to 12.10 euros.

The following stocks also rose or fell in German market Symbols are in parentheses.

Bertrandt AG (BDT GY) dropped 1.05 euros, or 4 percent, to 25.43, the biggest decline in two months. Bankhaus Lampe cut its share-price estimate for the company specializing in car design by 5.9 percent to 32 euros.

IKB Deutsche Industriebank AG (IKB GY) gained for a fourth time in five days, surging 17 cents, or 6.8 percent, to 2.68 euros. The lender bailed out after U.S. subprime investments will receive an additional 800 million euros in government aid to facilitate the sale of the bank, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung said.

K+S GY (SDF GY), Europe's largest producer of potash used in fertilizers, rallied 4.18 euros, or 5.7 percent, to 77.83, the highest this month. Competitor Israel Chemicals Ltd., which harvests minerals from the Dead Sea to make fertilizers and chemicals, said second-quarter profit rose more than fivefold on soaring potash prices.

Muehlhan AG (M4N GY) sank for a second day, falling 6 cents, or 2 percent, to 3 euros. WestLB AG lowered its share-price estimate for the company that provided rust protection to the Queen Mary 2 by 8.8 percent to 3.10 euros.

Rohwedder AG (RWD GY) plunged 1.14 euros, or 22 percent, to 3.95, the steepest decline since its initial public offering in March 2000. The maker of robots and testing equipment founded in 1956 predicted a full-year loss this year.

Solon AG fuer Solartechnik (SOO1 GY) fell 59 cents, or 1.4 percent, to 42 euros, the lowest in two weeks. Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. cut its share-price estimate for the solar company by 2.5 percent to 39 euros.

Wirecard AG (WDI GY) rallied 76 cents, or 11 percent, to 7.59 euros, the highest in seven weeks. The maker of online payment software raised its full-year forecast for profit growth in 2008.

To contact the reporters on this story: Stefanie Haxel in Frankfurt at shaxel@bloomberg.net; Daniela Silberstein in Zurich at dsilberstei2@bloomberg.net.