Euro Area: Economic sentiment increases in July
Latest reading: Economic sentiment rose to 95.8 in July from June’s 94.2. However, the index remained below the long-term average of 100, pointing to a muted near-term outlook for the economy.
The improvement was driven by stronger sentiment in the industrial, retail and services sectors. Moreover, confidence among consumers strengthened. That said, sentiment in the construction sector weakened.
In terms of specific countries, sentiment increased in France, Germany, Italy and Spain, while it deteriorated in the Netherlands.
Regarding indicators that are not used to calculate the index, employment expectations strengthened, while the economic uncertainty index rose in July.