Bad news coming from Germany. In August the Zew index, which measures expectations for the growth of the German economy based on the climate of business confidence, fell much more than expected. The latest survey stands at -44,1 points, from -24,5 in July. On average, analysts were expecting a much smaller decline, to -30. This month's figure is even the worst in eight years: to find an even lower index, in fact, we need to go back to December 2011. Also the elaboration relating to the current economic situation deteriorates decisively, dropping by 12,4 points, to -13,5.
“The reading indicates a significant deterioration in the prospects for Germany's economy – comments the president of the Zew institute, Achim Wambach – The recent escalation of the trade dispute between the United States and China, the risk of competitive devaluations, and the increasing likelihood of a no-deal Brexit put further pressure on already weak economic growth. This will most likely lead to a further squeeze on German exports and industrial production”.
With regard to prospects for the eurozone, the confidence of market operators shows a significant decline in August: in this case the index stood at -43,6 points, 23,3 less than in July. The indicator on current state of health of the euro area economy instead it fell by 3,9 points to -14,5.
At the end of the morning the Frankfurt Stock Exchange travels down by about one percentage point.
