German Feb ZEW economic sentiment drops to -13.4, current situation worsens to 15.0

Dhwani Mehta FXStreet

The German ZEW headline numbers for February showed that the economic sentiment index dropped to -13.4 versus -14.0 expectations and -15.0 last. While the sub-index current conditions figure plunged to 15.0 versus 23.0 expected and 27.6 booked previously, missing market expectations by a big margin.

ZEW President Professor Achim Wambach noted: “At the moment, we do not expect a rapid recovery of the slowing German economy. The economic situation in Germany has been weak, especially in the manufacturing sector. The figures for industrial production have once again seen a decrease, incoming orders are stagnant and foreign trade currently provides no fresh impulses. All of this is reflected in the fact that the assessment of the current situation has experienced a considerable decline. For the next six months, the financial market experts in our survey do not expect any improvement.”

About German ZEW

These numbers are derived via a survey of about 300 German institutional investors and analysts, conducted by the Zentrum für Europäische Wirtschaftsforschung (ZEW), which asks respondents to rate the relative 6-month economic outlook for Germany. Generally speaking, an optimistic view is considered as positive (or bullish) for the EUR, whereas a pessimistic view is considered as negative (or bearish).

Author

Dhwani Mehta

FXStreet

Residing in Mumbai (India), Dhwani is a Senior Analyst and Manager of the Asian session at FXStreet. She has over 10 years of experience in analyzing and covering the global financial markets, with specialization in Forex and commodities markets.

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