Zurich (MaceNews) – German business sentiment improved in February as both current conditions and expectations for the coming months improved, according to the latest report from the Munich-based Ifo Institute.
The Ifo Institute’s Business Climate Index rose to 92.4 in February from a revised 90.3 the previous month (90.1), beating the median forecast in an Econoday survey of economists of 90.3, which was within a range of 89.5 to 92. February’s result is the best since the 95.1 reading in October of last year.
“Assessments of the current business situation were more positive. Moreover, pessimism regarding the coming months was markedly reduced. The German economy is proving robust despite the lockdown, especially thanks to strength in industry,” Ifo President Clemens Fuest said in a statement.
The current conditions index rose to 90.6 from and unrevised 89.2 in January, beating the Econoday median of 88.9.
Expectations rose to 94.2 from a revised 91.5 (91.1) in January, beating both the median and high Econoday forecasts of 91.9 and 93.5, respectively.
The Ifo report improved along with the ZEW Institute’s Economic Expectations Index, which rose to 71.2 in February.
Ifo will release March results on March 26 at 10:00am CET.