Germany’s ZEW Economic Sentiment rose from 12.8 to 15.2 in January, above expectation of 12.7. Current Situation index fell slightly from -77.1 to -77.3, below expectation of -77.0.
Eurozone ZEW Economic Sentiment fell from 23.0 to 22.7, above expectation of 21.9. Current Situation index rose 3.4 points to -59.3.
ZEW President Achim Wambach noted that “Economic expectations for Germany have improved again,” attributing this positivity partly to expectations that ECB will cut interest rate in the first half of the year. This expectation is shared by “more than half of the respondents ”
Furthermore, Wambach highlighted that there are even more pronounced shifts in US interest rate expectations. He stated, “More than two-thirds of the respondents predict interest rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve in the next six months.”
Wambach also pointed out that the recent rise in inflation in Germany and Eurozone in December does not seem to have influenced the monetary policy expectations of the respondents.
