German Ifo Business Climate Index hits its highest in December

German business morale rose to the highest level in December since February 2014, suggesting the country's businesses were not affected by Donald Trump's surprise victory in the US presidential elections. The Munich-based Ifo Institute said its Business Climate Index, which is based on approximately 7,000 monthly survey responses in the manufacturing, construction, wholesale and retail sectors, advanced to 111.0 from 110.4 points seen in November, while market analysts anticipated a slight acceleration to 110.7 in the reported period. Shortly after, the Bundesbank said the German economy is likely rebounded more strongly than initially thought in the last quarter of 2016 after expanding just 0.2% quarter-over-quarter and 1.5% year-over-year in the Q3. Ifo also reported the Current Assessment Index climbed to 116.6 points in December, following the preceding month's 115.6 and surpassing analysts' expectations for 115.9. Furthermore, the Business Expectations Index, which measures how local businesses foresee the next six months, increased to 105.6 in the same month from November's 105.5, matching economists' projections. As a result, the Euro rose slightly against the US Dollar and British Pound, trading at 1.0468 and 0.8381, respectively.