Eurozone Economic Sentiment Strongest Since Early 2023

(RTTNews) - Eurozone economic confidence rose to the highest level in more than two years in October, survey data from the European Commission showed Thursday. The economic confidence index rose to 96.8 in October from 95.6 in the previous month. This was the highest score since April 2023 and well above the forecast of 95.7.

The survey showed that the upturn in the ESI was driven by higher confidence in almost all sectors.

The industrial sentiment index hit -8.2 compared to -10.1 in the prior month. This was strongest since June 2023. The expected reading was -10.0.

The services confidence index rose unexpectedly to a three-month high of 4.0 from 3.7 a month ago. The score was forecast to fall to 3.3.

The consumer sentiment index stood at -14.2, in line with the flash estimate and up from -14.9 in September.

Confidence among retailers improved in October with the index rising to -6.8 from -7.7. Similarly, the construction confidence index climbed to -2.9 from -3.4 in the previous month.