German shares closed flat on Tuesday, with the benchmark DAX index down 8.64 points, or 0.07 percent, to close at 12,995.06 points.

German pharmaceutical company Merck lost the most among the blue chips, down by 1.82 percent, followed by industrial giant Thyssenkrupp and telecommunications company Deutsche Telekom, which lost 1.38 percent and 0.92 percent respectively.

German semiconductor manufacturer Infineon Technologies, multinational chemical firm Linde and energy group RWE were the top three winners, rising 3.45 percent, 1.42 percent and 1.18 percent respectively.

Automotive manufacturer Daimler was the most traded share of the day, with a turnover of 218.45 million euros (256.87 million U.S. dollars).