Investing.com - German economic sentiment improved less than expected in August after having hit a four-year low in the previous month, industry data showed on Tuesday.
In a report, the ZEW Centre for Economic Research said that its index of German economic sentiment rose to 0.5 this month from July’s reading of minus 6.8 that had been its lowest level since November 2012. Analysts had expected the index to increase to 1.8 in August.
On the index, a level above 0.0 indicates optimism, a level below 0.0 indicates pessimism.
The Current Conditions Index rose to 57.6 this month from 49.8 in July, well above expectations for an increase to 50.0.
Meanwhile, the index of euro zone economic sentiment increased to 4.6 in August from a negative 14.7 a month earlier. Consensus was looking for a read of minus 6.3.
The ZEW commented that expectations were recovering somewhat after the surprise U.K. decision to leave the European Union (EU), though there was still uncertainty surrounding the resilience of the EU banking sector.
The report also noted that political risks both in and outside of Europe were preventing a more optimistic outlook for Germany.
EUR/USD was trading at 1.1259 from around 1.1260 ahead of the release of the data, while EUR/GBP was at 0.8685 from 0.8677 earlier.
Meanwhile, European stock markets were trading lower. The Euro Stoxx 50 fell 0.87%, Germany's DAX lost 0.60%, France’s CAC 40 traded down 0.47%, while London’s FTSE 100 was off 0.23%.