Germany Confidence Falters
June 22, 2012 by Douglas A. McIntyre
Add one more piece of pessimistic news to that coming from economic research firms in Europe. The Ifo Institute issued its latest data on Germany:
The Ifo Business Climate Index for industry and trade in Germany continued to fall in June. Although assessments of the current business situation brightened somewhat after deteriorating significantly last month, companies reported far lower expectations with regard to their six-month business outlook. The German economy fears the growing impact of the euro crisis.
The measurement of the current “climate” dropped modestly to 105.3 in June from 106.9 in May. But the forward-looking “expectations” measure fell to 97.3 from 100.8 in May. If the German economy is the best hope for a regional recovery, that hope already has ended.
Douglas A. McIntyre
