Mubasher: Sentiment among German investors surprisingly deteriorated in May, as the trade feud between the US and China darkened the growth outlook for Europe’s biggest economy, survey data revealed on Tuesday.

The indicator for economic sentiment for Germany plunged to -2.1 points in May, from 3.1 in April, the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) said.

Meanwhile, analysts polled by Reuters projected the gauge to rise to 5 points.

The latest reading of the index indicated expectations of a subdued economic growth in Germany over the next six months.

“The most recent escalation in the trade dispute between the US and China again increases the uncertainty regarding German exports, a key factor for the growth of the gross domestic product,” ZEW president Achim Wambach said.

However, the separate index gauging investors’ assessment of the current conditions in the German economy rose to 8.2 points in May, from 5.5 points in the previous month.

By 9:48 am GMT, the EUR/USD pair went up by 0.15% to $1.1239.