020 7898 0500The German ZEW economic sentiment index for January had been expected to rise to 17.8 from 17.4 the month previous, but it actually came in at 20.4. That is the highest reading since May 2016 and will be particularly welcomed as Germany is the eurozone’s largest economy.
More good news came in the form of the eurozone consumer confidence index which rose to 1.5 in January from 0.5 in December. More impressive was the fact it is the highest reading since August 2000. The euro strengthened against the dollar and sterling but the moves, especially against the former, were relatively minor.
Today we have the German Markit manufacturing purchasing managers’ index flash reading for January. It is expected to fall a little from 63.3 to 63.2 but, even if true, won’t be too much of a cause for concern given any figure above 50.0 shows growth.
