German economy moves ahead

West Germany's Ifo business climate index, climbing to 96.1 in October after stagnating at 95

West Germany's Ifo business climate index, climbing to 96.1 in October after stagnating at 95.4 in September, confirmed that Europe's largest economy was steaming ahead and had only taken a breather the previous month.

Separately, the European Central Bank governing council, which yesterday held its first deliberations after raising interest rates by 0.5 of a percentage point on November 4th, kept interest rates steady as expected, with the key refinancing rate unchanged at 3 per cent.