Germany's economic confidence increased to the highest level in nearly seven years in December, and also to a larger extent than expected by economists, latest data showed Tuesday.
The ZEW indicator of Economic Sentiment climbed to 62 in December from 54.6 in November, results of a survey conducted by the Centre for European Economic Research/ZEW revealed. Economists were looking for a slower increase to 55. The December reading was the highest since April 2006.
At the same time, the indicator of the country's current economic situation advanced to 32.4 in December from 28.7 a month earlier. Expectations were for a score of 29.9.
The survey showed that economic expectations for the Eurozone turned more optimistic, with the corresponding indicator rising to 68.3 in December from 60.2 in the previous month. The current conditions index for the euro area rose by 7.2 points to -54.4.
"Despite rather disappointing economic data released recently, the financial market experts expect the economic development in Germany and the Eurozone to improve further in 2014," ZEW President Clemens Fuest said.
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