DRESDEN (dpa-AFX) – In large parts of the East German economy, the mood has clouded for the fifth month in a row. This emerges from the new regional business climate index from the Ifo Institute, which was presented on Thursday in Dresden. Accordingly, the barometer fell in September from 90.4 points in August to 89.6 points. The companies surveyed reported slightly worse business and had slightly lowered their expectations for the coming months, the researchers explained. In April – the highest level so far this year – the barometer was still at 96.6.
According to Ifo, a two-part picture emerges when looking at the individual sectors. The business climate in the construction industry has cooled down significantly. Companies are noticeably less satisfied with their current business situation and are expecting somewhat worse business in the next six months. Companies in the retail and service sectors also assess their situation worse and are more pessimistic about the coming months.
In contrast, the mood in the manufacturing sector has brightened noticeably. “The industrial companies surveyed reported significantly better business than in August,” the researchers said. “They raised their business expectations slightly again.”
The business climate index is based on reports from around 1,700 companies. Every month we are asked about the current business situation and expectations for the next six months, but not about the exact reasons for this./hum/DP/stk