Going by the statistics put forth in a survey by the Ifo institute in Munich, business confidence in Germany rose to a level of 90.5 in August from the July level of 87.3; thereby marking the fifth consecutive monthly rise in the country business confidence.

The Ifo business confidence index comprises two sub-indexes - one evaluating current conditions and the other evaluating expectations. While the former rose to 86.1 from a revised 84.4 level, beating a forecast of 85.9; the latter increased to 95.0 from July's level of 90.4, surpassing a consensus forecast of 92.0.

The recently-revealed German business confidence level, which was based on a survey of 7,000 executives, happened to be 'stronger than expected' - a beforehand Dow Jones Newswires' poll had the economists projecting an average 88.8 level in the business climate.

In fact, the most recent 90.5 level of the index - which touched a 26-year low of 82.2 in March - is the highest reading since September 2008!

Noting the Europe's biggest economy is apparently steering its way towards recovery, Carsten Brzeski, an economist at Brussels' ING Group, said: "The third quarter has all ingredients for another growth surprise. The German economy steered out of recession faster than some pessimists had thought. However, any credit crunching and job shedding are clear speed limits to the recovery."