Investing.com - German economic sentiment was unchanged in December, missing forecasts for a slight increase and dampening optimism over the motor of the euro zone economy, industry data showed on Tuesday.
In a report, the ZEW Centre for Economic Research said that its index of German economic sentiment was unchanged this month from November’s reading of 13.8. Analysts had expected the index to increase to 14.0 in December.
On the index, a level above 0.0 indicates optimism, a level below 0.0 indicates pessimism.
The Current Conditions Index however, smashed past consensus with a sharp rise to 63.5 this month from 58.8 in November, compared to expectations for a smaller increase to 59.1. That was its highest level since September 2015.
Additionally, the index of euro zone economic sentiment rose to 18.1 in December from 15.8 a month earlier. Consensus was looking for an increase to 16.5.
Despite the unchanged reading in the German economic sentiment in November, the improvement in current conditions led ZEW president Achim Wambach to declare that the overall assessment is "quite positive".
"The considerable economic risks arising from the tense situation in the Italian banking sector, as well as the political risks surrounding upcoming elections in Europe, seem to have faded into the background at the moment," he concluded.
EUR/USD was trading at 1.0621 from around 1.0617 ahead of the release of the data, while EUR/GBP was at 0.8358 from 0.8348 earlier.
Meanwhile, European stock markets were trading higher. The benchmark Euro Stoxx 50 gained 0.95%, Germany's DAX advanced 0.76%, France’s CAC 40 rose 0.71%, while London’s FTSE 100 traded up 0.18%.