Germany’s Economic Woes Worsen As Confidence Slides

Not that anyone needed additional confirmation, but an update on the key leading indicator for the world's fourth-largest economy showed Germany is mired in an interminable malaise, as I put it earlier this week. Ifo printed 85.7 for August, down from July and the worst since October. The current conditions gauge dropped to a three-year low. The outlook isn't much better. "Companies are increasingly pessimistic about the months ahead," the color accompanying Friday's release said. "The German