Figures released this morning showed that German business confidence fell in November after hitting a five-year high in October.
The widely watched business climate index, calculated each month by the Ifo economic research institute, fell to 97.8 points in November from 98.8 points in October, Ifo said in a statement.
The decline was steeper than expected, as analysts had predicted a more modest drop to around 98.4 points. For its monthly survey, Ifo polls around 7,000 companies about their assessment of current business and their expectations for the next six months.
A breakdown of the data showed that the current sentiment sub-index fell to 97.8 points in November from 98.9 in October. The expectations sub-index also slipped to 97.7 points from 98.6 points.
'The latest data confirm a continuation of the current moderate economic recovery,' Ifo chief Hans-Werner Sinn said.
