January 2002 - Nr. 1
Ifo Business Climate Index Edged Up in November
TWIG - A widely observed early indicator of economic development in Germany shows that the country’s business climate is stabilizing after months of decline. The Munich-based Ifo Institute announced Monday (December 17) that its survey of more than 7,000 enterprises on their appraisals of the business situation and their short-term planning revealed the first up tick in many months. The business climate index for western Germany inched up in November, to 84.9 points from 84.7 points. The index results for eastern Germany were stronger still, up to 97.3 points from 96.5 points. In October, the index had slipped only slightly, but had nose-dived in September following the terrorist attacks in the United States. Gernot Nerb, chief economist at Ifo, refrained from identifying an economic trend change. "For that, we would need positive developments over a period of three months," he said. Although Nerb was unwilling to hazard a forecast for the new year, he did say that "under normal circumstances, the worst would seem to be over."
