CAC 40 GR vs DAX
The DAX has always reinvested dividends; the CAC 40 everyone quotes does not count them. Comparing the two directly gets the answer wrong — hence this matchup against the CAC 40 GR, the only French version playing by the same rules.
Over the period both series share, DAX comes out ahead at +8.8% a year.
| Asset | Total return | Annualised | Volatility | Largest drawdown |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAC 40 GR | ×25.9 | +8.7% a year | 19.0% | −59.4% (April 2003) |
| DAX | ×26.7 | +8.8% a year | 20.0% | −68.3% (April 2003) |
Figures calculated on 26/10/2026 from monthly closing prices. Past performance is no guide to future performance.
Two national indices, one asymmetric calculation
The DAX, the benchmark index of the German market, has historically been published as a performance index: dividends are reinvested. The CAC 40 is a price index. Comparing them as they stand strips dividends from one side only, and the resulting gap has no economic meaning.
The CAC 40 GR restores the symmetry. The comparison then measures what it claims to measure: the relative performance of two markets, dividends included on both sides.
What really separates the two markets
The two indices do not cover the same industries. The Paris market is shaped by luxury goods, energy and financial services; the German market by manufacturing, chemicals and carmakers. The cycles that lift one are not always those that lift the other.
Neither is pure exposure to its national economy: the companies in these indices earn most of their revenue outside their home country. What the comparison measures therefore owes more to sector composition than to the relative health of the two economies.
Frequently asked questions
Does a price version of the DAX exist?
Yes, as the DAX Kursindex, but it is rarely published. The performance version is the one quoted and discussed.