By Ed Frankl
Germany’s economic outlook improved more than expected, with the headline sentiment indicator reaching positive territory in November for the first time since April amid renewed optimism of an industrial turnaround, according to a monthly survey published Tuesday.
The ZEW Indicator of Economic Sentiment over the next six months jumped 10.9 points on month to 9.8 in November, better than expectations of a smaller rise to 5.0 from a consensus of economists polled by The Wall Street Journal.
The data supports the view that the recent economic slowdown in Germany has bottomed out, ZEW President Achim Wambach said. The German economy contracted 0.1% in the third quarter, according to official statistics published last month.
The improved economic expectations were driven by a significantly more optimistic outlook for the German industrial sector and both domestic and foreign stock markets, the survey said.
“Inflation and short- and long-term interest rates also appear to have reached turning points in expectations,” Wambach said.
Meanwhile, ZEW’s assessment of Germany’s current conditions barely changed, ticking up 0.1 points to as still-subdued minus 79.8, although the lack of downturn was remarkable given the deterioration in the assessment of the overall eurozone’s economic situation, Wambach added.
Write to Ed Frankl at [email protected]
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