- Carsten Brzeski at ING
German business confidence deteriorated for a fourth consecutive month in August to the lowest reading in more than two years, a sign domestic companies are vulnerable to the debt crisis in Europe. Ifo business climate index, which is based on a survey of 7,000 businesses, declined to 102.3 points from 103.2 points in July.
"The downward slide continues as German companies are increasingly becoming pessimistic about the future," said Carsten Brzeski at ING.
"It looks as if the German economy will, at best, be treading water in the coming months. The latest batch of sentiment indicators even points to a contraction in the third quarter," he added.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index fell 0.37 per cent to 268.20. Germany's DAX Index rose 1.10 per cent and France's CAC 40 Index added 0.86 per cent.
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