FRANKFURT (dpa-AFX) - Reports of an alleged Iranian missile attack on a US warship in the Strait of Hormuz weighed on the Dax after a positive start. The German benchmark index shed 1.24 percent to close at 23,991.27 points. Thursday's recovery attempt - ahead of the long weekend - has thus fizzled out for now.

The MDax of mid-cap companies ended Monday 0.47 percent lower at 30,445.74 points. The Eurozone benchmark EuroStoxx 50 ultimately fell by 2 percent. Zurich also posted a clear loss, while London remained closed for a public holiday. The US benchmark Dow Jones Industrial was trading 0.8 percent weaker at the European close, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 lost 0.4 percent.

'The situation remains unchanged: news from the Middle East is causing nervousness and price swings in both directions', commented Andreas Lipkow, Chief Market Analyst at broker CMC Markets. Trading volume remained rather below average, and as the new month began, the first investors were reminded of the stock market adage 'Sell in May'.

Iranian news agencies with links to the country's Revolutionary Guards had initially reported a missile attack on a US warship. However, the United States denied shortly thereafter that a US vessel had been hit. Iran had issued several warnings following the announcement of a new US initiative aimed at clearing the Strait of Hormuz, a vital artery for global oil transport, for shipping. It was stated that ships entering the Strait of Hormuz without consultation with Iran could be attacked. In addition, there were further reciprocal attacks between Israel and the Iran-aligned Hezbollah militia operating in southern Lebanon.

Shares in logistics group DHL slumped 7.3 percent at the bottom of the Dax. US e-commerce and technology giant Amazon had announced it would open its logistics network to all companies. In New York, shares of DHL competitors UPS and Fedex also fell significantly.

New tariff announcements by US President Donald Trump on vehicles from the EU weighed on automotive stocks. In the Dax, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, BMW, Traton < DE000TRAT0N7> and Daimler Truck lost up to 3.4 percent.

The fact that industrial group Thyssenkrupp does not intend to sell its steel division for the time being and has broken off talks with Indian competitor Jindal caused price swings in both directions. Ultimately, the shares shed 1.8 percent.

Shares in perfume chain Douglas slid nearly 8 percent as the biggest loser in the small-cap SDax index following quarterly results and a guidance cut.

In contrast, shares in defense contractor Rheinmetall recovered at the top of the Dax, gaining 2.4 percent. They benefited, among other things, from an upgrade by the Spanish bank Santander.

At Evotec, the cooperation with Almirall is bearing its first fruit: shares in the drug discovery firm gained 2 percent. The aim of the partnership is the research and development of novel therapeutics for the treatment of severe skin diseases. Evotec has now announced the first preclinical development candidate from the dermatology collaboration with Almirall./gl/he

--- By Gerold Löhle, dpa-AFX ---