German business morale sinks to start new year

BERLIN, Jan 25 (AFP): German business morale sank further in January, a key survey showed Thursday, as the slump in Europe's largest economy showed few signs of passing quickly.
The Ifo institute's closely watched confidence barometer, based on a survey of around 9,000 companies, slid to 85.2 points in the first month of the year, after falling to 86.3 points in December.
The New Year drop disappointed analysts surveyed by financial data firm FactSet, who had expected a gentle increase in the indicator. "The German economy is stuck in recession," said Ifo president Clemens Fuest, with companies assessing the current situation and the outlook as worse than a month before.