By Marco Babic
ZURICH (MaceNews) – Economic sentiment in Germany bounced back in December from a decline the previous month, as pending approvals for a COVID-19 vaccine pushed expectations higher, the Mannheim based ZEW institute reported Tuesday.
The Index of Economic Sentiment for Germany rose 16.0 points to 55.0 in December, well above the median forecast of 46.0 in an Econoday survey of forecasts, having “largely recovered from the sharp decline witnessed in the previous month,” ZEW said.
“The announcement of imminent vaccine approvals makes financial market experts more confident about the future. The ZEW Indicator of Economic Sentiment increased significantly in December despite the still high numbers of new coronavirus infections. This is most likely due to the announced forthcoming COVID-19 vaccine approvals,” comments ZEW President Professor Achim Wambach.
Optimism for the euro-area economies improved even more, rising 21.6 points to 54.4, according to the report.
While the outlook improved, current conditions for Germany worsened slightly, falling 2.2 points in December to -66.5, which was just below the Econoday median of -66.0. For the eurozone, sentiment ticked higher by 0.7 points to -75.7, ZEW said.
Investors will look for further confirmation of the positive trend on December 18, when Germany’s IFO institute releases its economic sentiment for December.
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Contact this reporter: marco@macenews.com.
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