Italy: Business confidence strengthens in February
The National Institute of Statistics (Istat)’s composite business confidence indicator (Clima di Fiducia delle Imprese Italiane, IESE)—which covers the manufacturing, construction, services and retail sectors—rose to 108.7 points in February, above January’s 105.6 points.
The strengthening came mainly on the back of a notable improvement in sentiment in the market services and construction sectors, in which expectations on future sales grew significantly. Sentiment in the manufacturing sector also improved, albeit to a lesser extent, as expectations on order books increased. On the other hand, confidence in the retail trade sector deteriorated, as both the assessments on current sales and the expectations on future sales deteriorated.