German business confidence reached a fresh record high in January thanks to a surge of optimism among exporters, which offers some reassurance for the region in the face of sovereign debt concerns, according to The Wall Street Journal. On Friday, the Ifo Institute reported that its business-climate index added half a point to reach 110.3, which outpaced economists forecast and marked the ninth consecutive month of improving sentiment.
Within the report, the sub-index for current sentiment edged down to 112.8, while the gauge for expectations added one point to reach 107.8 to boost hopes for a strong start to 2011. However, surging prices in Germany and the rest of the eurozone has the European Central Bank increasingly concerned over inflationary risks, which it said warrants “very close monitoring of price developments” in the region. Inflation reached 2.2% in the latest report, exceeding the bank’s 2% target rate for the first time in over two years.
Click here to read the story on German confidence from The Wall Street Journal.
Click here for coverage of eurozone inflation from The Wall Street Journal.