11:54 AM EDT, 05/13/2026 (MT Newswires) -- German shares ended an earnings-heavy session in positive territory, with the blue-chip DAX index up 0.76% on Wednesday.

Merck KGaA (MRK.F) was among the index's top performers, rising 7.21%, after lifting its full-year 2026 guidance, driven by expected growth in its life science and healthcare businesses despite challenging market conditions. The German science and technology company expects 2026 net sales of 20.4 billion euros to 21.4 billion euros, compared with its previous forecast of 20 billion euros to 21.1 billion euros.

Meanwhile, Siemens'(SIE.F) fiscal second-quarter sales held steady at 19.76 billion euros, 1.9% behind the consensus estimate of 20.14 billion euros and 1.4% below RBC Capital Markets'forecast of 20.03 billion euros. On the flip side, the German technology group's reported orders climbed 11% to 24.11 billion euros on increased demand in most of its industrial businesses, particularly smart infrastructure.

"Overall, a supportive progression in [Digital Industries / Smart Infrastructure] (but consensus already positioned in the upper end of guidance here), but slightly disappointing that this is offset at the group level by Mobility and Healthineers (SHL.F). While Siemens is making corporate progress with the reduction in its stake in Healthineers, the slow timeline on the spin, and uncertainty around factors such as the macro demand backdrop and AI software risks, may still limit investor enthusiasm in the short term,"the research firm wrote in a quick-take note. Siemens was up 0.83% at the end of the trading day, while Siemens Healthineers gained 0.09%.

In economic news, the eurozone's gross domestic product ticked up 0.1% for the first quarter, after a 0.2% rise in the previous three-month period and consistent with the initial estimate. According to Eurostat's second estimate, the eurozone registered 0.8% economic growth on a yearly basis, consistent with the initial data and against the previous 1.3% growth, which factored in recently joined Bulgaria, and the 1.2% jump excluding that country.

Back at home, Germany's selling prices in wholesale trade were up 6.3% year over year in April, following a 4.1% jump in March. On a monthly basis, wholesale prices were 2% higher, against the previous 2.7% gain.

On the geopolitical front, Danske Bank said it does not anticipate "major breakthroughs"from the upcoming meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. "Trump does not have the incentives nor the means to ramp up the pressure on China with focus remaining on the war in Iran and earlier court ruling still constraining his tariff weapon,"the research firm wrote in a preview report.