The business climate in Germany warmed again in September, offering a further signal for a possible recovery in the euro zone's biggest economy.
But figures released this morning showed that companies were feeling more confident only about the future, not about their current situation.
The business climate index calculated by the economics research institute Ifo rose to 91.9 points in September from 90.8 points in August. The index is now at its highest level since the middle of last year.
But Ifo President Hans-Werner Sinn noted that the improvement was restricted to companies' outlook for the next six months, and not to their assessment of their current situation.
A breakdown of the data showed that the current sentiment sub-index fell to 79.2 points in September from 79.9 points in August. The expectations sub-index jumped to 105.2 points in September from 102.2 points in August.
