FX.co ★ German Ifo Business Confidence Unexpectedly Improves In April

Germany's business confidence unexpectedly improved in April as the economy showed its resilience after the initial shock of the Russian attack, survey data published by the ifo Institute showed on Monday.

The business climate index rose to 91.8 in April from 90.8 in March. The reading was forecast to fall to 89.1.

The improvement reflects less pessimism in companies' expectations, while their view on the current situation is minimally better.

The current situation indicator came in at 97.2, slightly up from 97.1 a month ago. Economists had expected the index to decline to 95.8. Similarly, the business expectations index climbed to 86.7 from 84.9, while the reading was seen easing to 83.5.

The survey showed that the business climate index in the manufacturing sector climbed again after the plunge it took in the previous month. The reason for this was the rise in the expectations indicator. In contrast, they were rather less satisfied with their current situations.

At the same time, business climate in the service sector improved markedly as service providers were significantly more satisfied with their current business. In addition, they look to the coming months with less pessimism.

On the other hand, in trade, overall confidence fell further due to noticeably worse assessments of the current situation. Expectations improved slightly, but are still strongly pessimistic.

In construction, the business climate plunged to its lowest value since May 2010, the survey showed. Companies were much less satisfied with their current situation, and their expectations have not been so pessimistic since reunification.