The sentiment among German businesses has not been adversely affected by the coronavirus epidemic. This suggests that investors are confident of the short-term impact of the contagion and that the economic slowdown has remained far in 2019.

The Ifo Institute’s business sentiment index rose to 96.1 points this month compared to 95.9 points in January and despite expectations of a decline to 95.3 points. The business expectations indicator also increased to 93.4 points in February from the 92.9 points measured in January.

European activity surveys reported stronger than expected results in February, showing some resilience in the corporate world. On the other hand, business activity in Japan has fallen to its lowest level in the last six years.

“The German economy seems unaffected by the development of the coronavirus”, said Ifo President Clemens Fuest. “The study and other indicators show a 0.2% economic growth in the first quarter”, added he.

Economic implications were a key topic in talks between the finance ministers and the G20 central bank governors this weekend at their meeting in Riyadh. Although participants in the meeting are still confident that growth will recover relatively quickly, they have come together around a “set of policy options” to counter the epidemic if necessary.

Authorities hope the German economy will return to growth this quarter after stagnation from late last year. The country’s statistics service will update its GDP data for the fourth quarter on Tuesday, along with details of consumer spending, exports, and investment.