German Business Sentiment Eases Slightly in August

German business sentiment in August eased only marginally from July's record high, a sign that Europe's largest economy continues to stay on a solid growth path, the Ifo Institute said Friday.

The Ifo's business climate index slipped to 115.9 points from 116.0 points in July. Economists polled by The Wall Street Journal had forecast a decline to 115.5 points.

"The sentiment among German businesses remains very strong," said the think tank's president, Clemens Fuest.

German companies were less upbeat about their current situation, but their short-term business outlook improved further, according to the Ifo's monthly survey of about 7,000 companies.

Germany's statistics body said earlier Friday that the economy grew at an annualized rate of 2.5% in the second quarter, propelled by corporate investment and private consumption.

Write to Nina Adam at nina.adam@wsj.com

(MORE TO FOLLOW) Dow Jones Newswires

August 25, 2017 04:56 ET (08:56 GMT)