Business confidence in Germany increased in November, beating expectations, as companies foresee a less severe recession than previously expected.
The Ifo business-climate index rose to 86.3 points in November from a revised reading of 84.5 points in October, data from the Ifo Institute showed Thursday. Economists polled by The Wall Street Journal had expected the index to come in at 85.0.
While companies were somewhat less satisfied with their current business, pessimism regarding the coming months reduced sharply, Ifo President Clemens Fuest said in the report.
The index of the current situation fell to 93.1 in November from 94.2 in October, while the gauge assessing companies’ expectations rose to 80.0 from 75.9.
The Ifo index is based on a poll of about 9,000 companies in manufacturing, services, trade and construction.
Write to Maria Martinez at [email protected]
