(Bloomberg) — Investor confidence in the outlook for Germany improved, on hopes that the roll-out of Covid-19 vaccines will boost the recovery in Europe’s largest economy.
ZEW’s gauge of expectations for the next six months rose to 55.0 in December from 39 a month earlier. That’s still well below levels recorded in September, before the region was hit by a second wave of infections.
Germany shut restaurants, gyms and cinemas in November but kept shops open, trying a softer approach than some other European countries to rein in the disease. Yet with contagion rates remaining elevated, it’s now considering tightening measures.
So far, the nation’s relatively large manufacturing sector has helped the country weather the economic impact of the pandemic. Industrial output increased for a sixth month in October, according to a reading on Monday, with orders driven by both domestic and export demand.
“The announcement of imminent vaccine approvals makes financial market experts more confident about the future,” ZEW President Achim Wambach said in a statement.
Uncertainty around the outlook is still high though, as it’s unclear how quickly those vaccines will be made widely available. There may also be lasting damage from the crisis if job cuts increase and more companies go out of business.
Euro-area employment was down 2.3% in the third quarter from the previous year, despite a strong rebound in economic activity.
Output in the 19-nation region jumped a revised 12.5% in the July-September period from the previous three months, according to a Eurostat report, with private consumption and exports each contributing more than 7 percentage points.
The economy is likely to shrink again in the fourth quarter because of the new coronavirus curbs. The European Central Bank is poised to boost its emergency monetary stimulus this week to keep ensure companies and households get the support they need.
OTTAWA – Statistics Canada says the country’s merchandise trade deficit narrowed to $1.3 billion in September as imports fell more than exports.
The result compared with a revised deficit of $1.5 billion for August. The initial estimate for August released last month had shown a deficit of $1.1 billion.
Statistics Canada says the results for September came as total exports edged down 0.1 per cent to $63.9 billion.
Exports of metal and non-metallic mineral products fell 5.4 per cent as exports of unwrought gold, silver, and platinum group metals, and their alloys, decreased 15.4 per cent. Exports of energy products dropped 2.6 per cent as lower prices weighed on crude oil exports.
Meanwhile, imports for September fell 0.4 per cent to $65.1 billion as imports of metal and non-metallic mineral products dropped 12.7 per cent.
In volume terms, total exports rose 1.4 per cent in September while total imports were essentially unchanged in September.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2024.
