A survey has shown that business confidence in Germany has fallen to its lowest level since October as companies are less optimistic about the outlook for the next six months.
The widely watched business climate index, calculated each month by the Munich-based Ifo institute Ifo, fell to 106.4 points in July from 107 in June.
Ifo president Hans-Werner Sinn said companies were positive about the current situation, but the outlook for the next six months did not look as favourable. Economists had expected the decline.
For its monthly survey, Ifo polls about 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 dipped slightly to 111.3 points from 111.4 in June. The expectations sub-index also decreased, falling to 101.8 from 102.8.
