Investing.com - German business confidence improved to the highest level in eight months in March, fuelling optimism over the health of the euro zone’s largest economy, industry data showed on Wednesday.
In a report, the German research institute, Ifo said its Business Climate Index rose to a seasonally adjusted 107.9 this month, up from a reading of 106.8 in February and above forecasts for 107.3.
The Current Assessment Index increased to 112.0 in March, in line with expectations and up from 111.3 in February.
The Business Expectations Index, which measures attitudes toward business prospects over the next six months, improved to 103.9 this month from 102.5 in February, beating estimates for 103.0.
The monthly index is based on a survey of around 7,000 German firms in the manufacturing, construction, wholesale and retail sectors.
EUR/USD was trading at 1.0958 from around 1.0963 ahead of the release of the data, while EUR/GBP was at 0.7375 from 0.7374 earlier.
Meanwhile, European stock markets were mixed. Germany's DAX tacked on 0.1%, the EURO STOXX 50 dipped 0.1%, France’s CAC 40 shed 0.15%, while London’s FTSE 100 inched up 0.15%.