Mubasher: German business sentiment saw a slight upturn in September, snapping a five-month deteriorating streak, but expectations took a downward turn, an indication that Europe’s biggest economy is on course for a recession.

The German business climate index inched up to 94.6 points in September, from the revised 94.3 in August, data released by the Ifo economic institute showed on Tuesday.

“The downturn is taking a breather,” Ifo President Clemens Fuest said in a statement.

Factories were once again less content their ongoing business conditions, as their expectations were gloomy in the upcoming months.

“The current demand development and production plans offer no promise of improvement in the coming months,” Fuest said.

For German services providers, the picture was brighter, as they were more satisfied with their current business situation, while their outlook for the next half of the year was once again bright.

By 8:49 am GMT, the USD/EUR pair ticked down by 0.01% to $1.0992.