What’s the difference between the DAX and UK 100 indices?

Those who are interested in investing in securities need to have a good understanding of the indices of various stock exchanges in order to understand which stocks to be interested in and which ones to avoid. 

Two of the most popular indices, which invariably attract the attention of the world’s largest shareholders, are the DAX 30 and UK 100 indices. But what are their features?

What is the DAX 30 index?

The DAX index is the main stock market index in Germany and one of the most important in the world. It tracks the stock prices of 30 of the most successful German companies (so-called “blue chips”) that are traded on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. 

It is the most widely used measure of a country’s equity capital market. DAX also reflects the economic state of Europe as a whole.

What companies are included in the DAX 30? 

As of 2022, DAX stocks include well-known brands such as:

• Adidas;
• BMW;
• Siemens;
• Deutsche Bank;
• other DAX index companies.

How the DAX index is calculated

As letizo.com suggests, the DAX index is calculated as the average of the stock prices of the 30 largest German companies. In this case, the arithmetic mean is calculated based on the capitalization of these corporations.

The prices used in the calculation of the DAX index are provided by the Xetra electronic trading system operated by Deutsche Börse.

What is the UK 100 index?

The UK 100 index live is based upon the FTSE 100 index. In turn, the Financial Times Stock Exchange 100 Index/FTSE 100 is an index of 100 stocks listed on the London Stock Exchange with the highest market capitalization. 

Just like its German brother DAX, the UK 100 measures the health of the UK economy. The UK 100 represents approximately 81% of the value of the UK market on the London Stock Exchange.

List of the UK 100 index companies

As of 2022, the top 5 companies by market cap in the UK 100 Index are:

• Pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca;
• Oil giant Shell;
• HSBC Bank;
• Consumer goods manufacturer Unilever;
• Alcohol producer Diageo.

How is FTSE 100 calculated?

Companies included in the UK 100 are determined on a quarterly basis – usually in March, June, September, and December. A decision whether to include this or that firm in the index is based on its market cap. Every year, some companies are excluded from the index, others are included. All this depends on the market position of the shares of companies in the UK 100 index.