FRANKFURT/NEW YORK (dpa-AFX) - With surprisingly good quarterly figures, the US company Danaher has also given Merck KGaA and Sartorius investors confidence on the German stock market. Merck shares rose by 3.6 percent in the early afternoon, while Sartorius gained 4.8 percent. This put them at the top of the DAX.

The shares of the pharmaceutical and specialty chemicals group Merck KGaA are now making up further ground after their correction in April, while the shares of the pharmaceutical and laboratory supplier Sartorius have managed to stabilize after their price slide in the previous week in the wake of disappointing quarterly figures.

The life sciences and diagnostics group Danaher exceeded expectations with its earnings figures for the first quarter and its shares rose by more than eight percent in pre-morning US trading./ajx/jha/