German entrepreneurs’ confidence in the economy recovered slightly in May. The leading research institute Ifo reported that, after an all-time low in April.
The Ifo confidence index stood at 79.5 in May against a revised 74.2 in April. That was slightly lower than the 74.3 previously reported. Economists had expected a recovery to 78.5 by May.
“Sentiment among German entrepreneurs has recovered slightly after several catastrophic months,” said Ifo President Clemens Fuest. Nevertheless, according to Fuest, “many companies are still pessismistic”. Carefully phasing out the corona measures “offers some hope”.
ING chief economist Carsten Brzeski notes that Germany does not seem to be heading for a rapid recovery. German entrepreneurs have become even more pessimistic about the current state of the economy, but are again seeing favorable prospects more often, which made the overall picture more positive. Although the first signs of recovery are beginning to show, Brzeski says we should wait and see what the lasting damage to the economy will be.