ATX reaches record high despite rising oil prices

The Austrian Traded Index (ATX) reached a record high on Friday, rising to 6,914 points at the start of trading despite high oil prices. The index closed the day up 0.22 percent at 6,885.23 points, maintaining a weekly gain of 0.4 percent.

Market performance was influenced by US inflation data, which met expectations with a 3.4 percent rate in August and a core rate of 2.4 percent. These figures have increased market expectations that the US Federal Reserve may raise interest rates next week. While this caused brief pressure on Austrian stocks, the ATX Prime also saw gains of 0.21 percent.

In the energy sector, Brent crude oil prices stabilized around 105 US dollars after earlier spikes toward 110 dollars following attacks on shipping routes in the Middle East. Analysts suggest that rising prices across the futures curve indicate investor expectations of a prolonged period of high energy costs.