German business expectations rebounded from a record low as the outlook for export sales stabilised, the DIHK chambers of industry and trade, citing a survey of more than 20,000 companies.

The balance of optimistic and pessimistic expectations rose to minus 27 from minus 35 in a survey published in February, led by industry and construction. Export expectations rose to minus 34 from minus 35. The survey was conducted in April and May and was finished earlier this month.

Chancellor Angela Merkel’s coalition is spending about € 82bn on stimulus measures to pull Europe’s biggest economy out of its worst recession since World War II. The DIHK survey, the country’s biggest, adds to evidence that fiscal stimulus and interest-rate reductions may halt the decline later this year.

The German economy contracted more than forecast in the first quarter, slumping the most on record. Gross domestic product (GDP) plunged a seasonally adjusted -3.8% from the fourth quarter, when it fell -2.2%, according to the Federal Statistics Office.