German stocks are down on Friday due to concerns about a possible downgrade of France’s sovereign rating, but optimism about a potential Federal Reserve interest rate cut helps limit losses. The DAX is down 0.24% at 23,635.88. Commerzbank, Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, and BMW are down 1.8 to 2%. Siemens Energy, Heidelberg Materials, Bayer, and Infineon Technologies are lower by 1 to 1.4%. SAP is up 0.25% after completing the acquisition of SmartRecruiters. Germany’s consumer price inflation rose to 2.2% in August, the highest in five months, with core inflation stable at 2.7%. The HICP rose 2.1% year-on-year.

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