German ZEW Economic Sentiment stands at 0.5 – slightly below expectations

German business sentiment is roughly balanced. While the figure returned to positive ground, it is only just. At 0.5 points, it is below expectations. The all euro-zone figure is up to 4.6 points, and that is better than expected. Separately, the eurozone’s trade balance has been reported at 23.4 billion, basically within expectations. It is a number for June.

EUR/USD remains stable just under 1.1260. Earlier, EUR/USD made a surge to the highest since June 24th, the day after the Brexit vote.

Germany’s ZEW Economic Sentiment was expected to bounce back to positive territory in August, moving up from -6.8 points in July to +1.8 now. The fall to the negative ground was related to Brexit. This survey is released early in the month and provides a useful insight on the economy. However, the IFO number is a wider study and carries more weight.

EUR/USD was around 1.1260