German investor sentiment weakened sharply in August, with the ZEW Economic Sentiment Index falling from 52.7 to 34.7, well below expectations of 40.0. Current Situation Index deteriorated further from -59.5 to -68.6, also missing forecasts of -63.0.
For the Eurozone as a whole, ZEW Economic Sentiment Index dropped from 36.1 to 25.1, missing the expected 28.4. The Current Situation Index fell by -7 points to -31.2.
ZEW President Achim Wambach said the decline was partly due to disappointment over the recently announced EU–US trade deal and Germany’s poor Q2 performance. He noted that the chemical, pharmaceutical, mechanical engineering, metal, and automotive industries are facing particular strain, worsening the forward-looking view.
