German business sentiment fell slightly less than expected this month as market turmoil hit morale.
The Munich-based Ifo economic research institute said its business climate index, based on a monthly poll of around 7,000 firms, registered 105.8 after 106.4 in July. A a fall to 105.4 had been anticipated.
The Ifo reading is a factor the European Central Bank will weigh when deciding whether or not to raise interest rates in September, an official at the bank said last week.
Ifo's gauge of current conditions rose to 111.5 from 111.3 in July, the institute said. The survey's expectations component fell to 100.4 from a downwardly revised 101.7 in the prior month. The poll had pointed to a fall to 100.3.
The survey was the first major measure of business sentiment in Europe's largest economy since fears of a global liquidity crisis knocked financial markets earlier this month.