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Breakdown of the latest developments on the global exchanges
Mar 18, 2020, 7:36 PM GMT
#Economy

The Economic Sentiment in Germany Crumbles in March

The ZEW German economic sentiment collapsed in March on coronavirus fears. The index plummeted to -49.5 points from 8.7, which were recorded in February. The consensus forecasts projected deterioration of only -29.7.

Germany ZEW Sentiment Index

The gloomy outlook on the German economy is prompted by the deteriorated growth prospects in the Eurozone, which is currently suffering due to the weak supply chains globally, and the inhibited supply of goods and services worldwide.

Recently, travel restrictions in and out of the block have also limited the non-essential movement of people.

Germany has closed its borders with France, Austria and the rest of its neighbouring countries in a bid to curtail the spread of the outbreak, in spite of the Schengen treaty. The COVID-19 pandemic is already proving injurious to the political unity in the Eurozone, and Germany is no exception.

Each country is dealing with the situation mostly on its own, which raises questions regarding the stability of the EU as well as the resilience of the European economy. For the time being, Germany has decided to finally boost its government spending to accommodate the strangled local businesses.

Germany has the biggest budget surplus in the Eurozone, which makes it the best-fitted country to fight the underlying challenge.

Meanwhile, the rally on the single currency has finally come to an end, as the euro is now giving way to the dollar. As it was mentioned in the previous section of the update, the demand for the greenback globally is supported by investors’ desire to flee to highly liquid assets.

The EURUSD is currently testing the strength of the significant support level at 1.08285.

EURUSD 1D Price Chart