German Economic Confidence Strongest Since 2015
May 16 2017 - 4:22AM
RTTF2
German economic confidence strengthened to the highest since
2015 as financial market experts expect economic growth to improve
in months ahead.
The ZEW Indicator of Economic Sentiment rose to 20.6 in May from
19.5 in April, survey data from the Mannheim-based Centre for
European Economic Research/ZEW showed Tuesday.
This was the highest score since August 2015 but slightly below
the expected level of 22.0.
The current conditions index climbed 3.8 points to 83.9 points
in May, which was above the expected level of 82.0 and the highest
since July 2011.
Taken together, the assessment of the current situation and the
economic sentiment show a positive outlook for the German economic
growth in the coming six months, ZEW said.
"The latest figures on the gross domestic product confirm that
the German economy is in good shape," ZEW President Professor Achim
Wambach, said.
"ZEW indicators have been pointing to this trend for some time.
The prospects for the eurozone as a whole are gradually improving,
further strengthening the economic environment for German exports,"
Wambach added.
Carsten Brzeski, an ING DiBa economist said the combination of a
high current assessment component and still increasing expectations
keeps the traffic light for the German economy on green.
The economic confidence index for the euro area rose notably by
8.8 points to 35.1 in May. At the same time, the indicator for the
current economic situation advanced 6.8 points to 18.3 points.
According to flash estimate released Tuesday, the euro area
economy expanded 0.5 percent sequentially in the first quarter, the
same pace of growth as seen in the fourth quarter of 2016.
On a yearly basis, GDP growth slowed slightly to 1.7 percent
from 1.8 percent in the fourth quarter. The sequential and annual
rates matched preliminary flash estimate.
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