Frankfurt (Reuters) - The optimistic mood on the German stock market is likely to continue.

According to calculations by banks and brokerage houses, the Dax will start slightly higher again on Wednesday. On Tuesday it had closed 1.8 percent firmer at 15,614.43 points. A surprisingly sharp fall in US inflation had raised investors' hopes of interest rate cuts by the Fed in the coming year.

The economic data expected on Wednesday will focus on retail sales in the USA for October. The fact that the US House of Representatives passed a stopgap budget late on Tuesday to prevent a government shutdown should provide some relief.

Investors are likely to focus on Siemens Energy among the numerous company balance sheets. The start-up and quality problems at the wind subsidiary Siemens Gamesa caused the net loss to swell to 4.59 billion euros (previous year: 712 million euros) in the past fiscal year 2022/23 (as at the end of September).

In Switzerland, an important day lies ahead for the major bank UBS. The highest court in France will decide on the Swiss bank's appeal in a years-long tax evasion case and the billion-euro fine imposed. 

               Closing prices of European indices Dax 15,614.43 Dax future 15,700.00 EuroStoxx50 4,291.72 EuroStoxx50 future 4,314.00 Closing prices of US indices on Wednesday Change previous trading day Dow Jones 34,827.70 +1.4 percent Nasdaq 14,094.38 +2.4 percent S&P 500 4,495.70 +1.9 percent Asian indices on Wednesday Change Nikkei 33,519.70 +2.5 percent Shang     
 (Report by Anika Ross, Zuzanna Szymanska. If you have any questions, please contact our editorial team at berlin.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for politics and the economy) or frankfurt.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for companies and markets).)