Business confidence in Germany has improved by a better-than-expected rate in June, underlining ongoing robust recovery of Europe’s biggest economy.

Ifo, a widely watched business climate index, said Tuesday that its index for Germany rose to 106.8 in June from an upwardly revised 105.7 in May, beating expectations.

Economists polled by the AFX financial news wire had forecast the index to dip to 105.2.
The business assessment index, which measures current conditions, climbed to 109.4 from 107.3 in May. Economists were looking for a June reading of 107.5.

The business expectations rose to 104.2 in June from 104.0 in the previous month, coming in above the 104.0 consensus forecast.

“The economic recovery continues to be robust,” said Ifo executive board member Gebhard Flaig.

“The decline of the business expectations did not continue; this time slightly more firms expect further improvement over the next six months,” he said.

SOURCE: AFP