German IFO Business Climate Index improves to 93.6 in April vs. 94 expected

German IFO Business Climate Index improved modestly in April.
EUR/USD trades in the upper half of its daily range slightly below 1.1000 after the data.

Eren Sengezer FXStreet

The headline German IFO Business Climate Index edged higher to 93.6 in April from 93.2 in March. This reading came in slightly weaker than the market expectation of 94.

Meanwhile, the Current Economic Assessment dropped to 95 from 95.4 and the IFO Expectations Index – indicating firms’ projections for the next six months, rose to 92.2 from 91, surpassing analysts' estimate of 91.6.

Market reaction

EUR/USD gained traction and turned positive on the day near 1.0990 with the initial reaction.

About German IFO

The headline IFO business climate index was rebased and recalibrated in April after the IFO Research Institute changed the series from the base year of 2000 to the base year of 2005 as of May 2011 and then changed the series to include services as of April 2018. The survey now includes 9,000 monthly survey responses from firms in the manufacturing, service sector, trade and construction.

Author

Eren Sengezer

FXStreet

As an economist at heart, Eren Sengezer specializes in the assessment of the short-term and long-term impacts of macroeconomic data, central bank policies and political developments on financial assets.

GBP/USD extends slide to fresh 2026-low near 1.3150

GBP/USD resumes its downside in the second half of the day on Wednesday and trades at its lowest level since November 2025 near 1.3150. The pair remains vulnerable amid a broadly firmer US Dollar and chaotic UK political environment. The focus is now on BoE-speak for further trading impetus.

EUR/USD slumps to new yearly low below 1.1350

EUR/USD stays under bearish pressure and trades at its lowest level in a year below 1.1350 on Wednesday. The pair remains vulnerable to further declines amid a bullish US Dollar, which continues to draw support from hawkish Fed bets and US-Iran peace deal uncertainty.

Gold closes in on $4,000 on persistent USD strength

Gold remains under persistent selling pressure and trades at its lowest level since November near $4,000 on Wednesday, losing more than 2.5% on the day. Hawkish Fed pricing, broad-based US Dollar strength and the uncertainty surrounding the US-Iran peace agreement make it difficult for the precious metal to find a foothold.

Crypto Today: Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP trade under pressure as September Fed rate-hike odds increase

Bitcoin is trading between $62,000 and $63,000 at the time of writing on Wednesday, weighed down by headwinds stemming from macroeconomic uncertainty and geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.

5.90% to 5.45%: Why the Pound ignored the bond market’s relief rally

Keir Starmer resigned on Monday, and the Pound barely moved. That near-silence is the tell. Sterling's real driver these past four months has not been the prime minister, nor the left-leaning frontrunner lining up to replace him, but the long end of the gilt curve, which answers to a force no British politician controls.

Regime change: Inside Kevin Warsh's first move to make the Fed unreadable on purpose

The rate did not move. That was the least interesting thing about Kevin Warsh's first meeting in charge of the Fed. The FOMC held its benchmark at 3.50%-3.75% for the fourth straight meeting, exactly as priced, and then the new chair used his first press conference to dismantle the machinery the market has leaned on for a decade.