Germany – Ifo defies Trump
The Ifo business climate rose slightly in April from 86.7 to 86.9, defying forecasts of a decline.
04/24/2025
Although companies' expectations have deteriorated somewhat, probably due to higher US tariffs, this was more than offset by a better assessment of the current situation. This gives hope that the German economy will pick up at least slightly in the course of this year.
This is undoubtedly a positive surprise: despite higher US tariffs and the resulting difficulties for German companies in accessing their most important export market, the United States, sentiment among German companies improved somewhat in April. While a decline in the Ifo business climate index had been widely expected, it rose slightly from 86.7 to 86.9 (Chart 1). This is the fourth consecutive increase.
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