Business morale on the rise in Germany

German business morale rose to its highest level in six months in January, climbing for a third consecutive month, a survey showed yesterday, in a sign that 2015 got off to a strong start for Europe’s largest economy.
By The Newsroom
Published 26th Jan 2015, 13:30 BST

Ifo’s business climate index, based on a monthly survey of some 7,000 firms, increased to 106.7 in January from 105.5 in December.

That was the highest reading since July and compared with the Reuters consensus forecast for 106.3.

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“All in all, almost everything is put in place for another strong year of the German economy. At least in a little perfect and linear world,” said ING economist Carsten Breszki.

“However, the aftermath of the Greek elections will show that perfect and linear worlds do not exist,” he added.

The survey showed firms felt more upbeat about the current situation compared with in December and they also became slightly more optimistic about their prospects for the next six months.

Some companies have made upbeat announcements recently, with sportswear company Adidas and Nivea skin-cream maker Beiersdorf both reporting better than expected rises in 2014 sales.

The Ifo survey showed improvements in the manufacturing, wholesale and retail sectors while construction firms fared slightly worse than in December.

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