German business confidence unexpectedly rose to an eight-month high in March, suggesting Europe's largest economy will return to growth even as the sovereign debt crisis curbs euro-area demand for its exports.

The Munich-based Ifo institute said today its business climate index, based on a survey of 7,000 executives, increased to 109.8 from a revised 109.7 in February. Economists forecast it would remain unchanged at the initial February reading of 109.6, according to the median of 44 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey.

Unemployment at a two-decade low is fueling domestic demand, while the European Central Bank's injection of more than 1 trillion euros ($1.3 trillion) into the banking system has helped to bolster investor sentiment. Germany's benchmark DAX share index is up 18 percent this year. Still, manufacturing output unexpectedly contracted this month as governments and households reduced spending across the euro region, Germany's largest export market.