"Ifo index provides further evidence that the economic contraction at the end of last year was only a brief stopover"
- Carsten Brzeski, senior economist at ING Group
German business confidence improved more than expected in February, defying fears that the euro zone's largest economy has slipped into recession. Ifo business climate index, which is based on a survey of 7,000 executives, rose to 109.6 points from 108.3 points in January.
"Did anyone say recession?" said Carsten Brzeski, senior economist at ING Group in Brussels. "Today's Ifo index provides further evidence that the economic contraction at the end of last year was only a brief stopover."
Germany's Bundesbank on February 20 said that the economic outlook has "improved perceptibly," even though "risks relating to the sovereign-debt crisis remain."
"The outlook for the German economy has significantly brightened over the last few weeks," said Christian Melzer, an economist at DekaBank in Frankfurt. "We can now thoroughly imagine the scenario that we won't see a technical recession."
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