German research institute Ifo reported here on Tuesday that an overwhelming majority of German economists oppose UK’s leaving of the European Union.
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He said the economy’s strong performance in the first quarter and the robust May reading of the Ifo index pointed to an upward revision to the full-year growth forecast.
The current conditions index came in at 114.2 in May, up from 113.2 in the prior month and above the expected score of 113.4.
At the same time, the expectations index climbed to 101.6 from a revised 100.5. The Business Climate was predicted to rise from 106.6 to 106.8 in May. Business confidence among wholesalers and retailers recovered from April.
All four sectors saw improvement, with construction setting a new record high since 1991.
However, the business confidence index in services weakened to 24.8 in May from 28.0 in April.
GfK’s forward-looking consumer sentiment index is set to edge up to 9.8 points in June from 9.7 points in May.
According to a latest Ifo’s survey, 85 percent of the surveyed economists are against the Brexit, with only 10 percent in favor.
The economic expectations index gained two points to 8.3 in May.
German business sentiment improved more than analysts estimated in May, signaling that growth momentum in Europe’s largest economy remains strong.
“There are a number of uncertainties that should not be underestimated”, GfK said. A gauge of expectations also improved.
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The research group reiterated its forecast for a 2% growth in real private consumer spending in 2016 after a 1.9% increase in 2015.
