AP reported that a closely watched survey shows that German business confidence has risen for the fifth consecutive month as managers' outlook for the next half year brightens.

The Ifo institute said that its confidence index rose to 107.6 points for October 2010 from 106.8 in September 2001, a much bigger rise than its marginal increase the previous month.

Ifo said that businesses' view of their current situation was stable. A sub index measuring that assessment edged up to 110.2 points from 109.8. The index's expectations component rose to 105.1 from 103.9 after two months of declines.

Ifo's survey comes a day after the German government more than doubled its economic growth forecast for this year to 3.4%. It expects the economy to grow by 1.8% in 2011.

(Sourced from Associated Press)