ZEW Indicator of Economic Sentiment for November: Indicator Reaches New Annual High

The ZEW Indicator of Economic Sentiment for Germany has increased again in November after having consolidated in the previous month. The indicator now stands at +67.2 points compared with +60.3 points in October.

"This is good news. Now it is important that economic policy lives up to the increased confidence. For that reason the German Council of Economic Experts will present its proposals for discussion tomorrow," says ZEW president Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. mult. Wolfgang Franz.

The surprisingly strong increase in new orders in September boosted optimism of the analysts interviewed by the ZEW. The recent stock market rally and a weaker Euro may also have contributed to the new optimism. Nevertheless, 88 percent of the experts stated that current economic activity is still weak and has not yet been able to benefit from improved economic sentiment. The general feeling of insecurity due to pending job market, tax and social reforms is still too strong.

The economic sentiment for the euro-zone also improved in November. The indicator gained +5.3 percent compared with last month's figures and now stands at +72.1 points. In total, economic sentiment for the euro-zone continues to be slightly more optimistic than for Germany.

308 analysts and institutional investors participated in this month's ZEW Financial Markets Survey which is conducted on a monthly basis by the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW), Mannheim. The participants were asked about their medium-range expectations concerning economic activity and capital markets. The ZEW Indicator of Economic Sentiment shows the balance between positive and negative expectations regarding future economic activity in Germany within a timeframe of six months.

Contact

Volker Kleff, E-mail: kleff@zew.de

David Lahl, E-mail: lahl@zew.de

Dr. Friedrich Heinemann, Phone: +49 (0)6211235-149, E-mail: heinemann@zew.de