Economic Sentiment Slips in EU, Broadly Unchanged in Eurozone

Source: European Commission

Economic sentiment posted a slight decline in the European Union but was broadly stable in the eurozone in May, while employment expectations posted a slight increase. EZU is up 0.05%, while VGK is down 0.53% premarket.

• The Economic Sentiment Indicator fell by 0.5 points to 104.1 in the European Union while gaining 0.1 points to 105.0 in the eurozone.
• The decline in the EU was attributed to weaker confidence among industry managers and consumers during the month.
• Industry confidence softened for the third straight month, as the assessment of order books posted the biggest drop in two years.
• Service confidence was broadly unchanged for the second straight month, with the past business situation and past demand posting improvements.
• Consumer confidence posted a slight decline, with weaker views on the past financial situation and expectations about the general economic situation.
• The biggest jumps were seen in Spain, France, and Italy, while declines were recorded in Poland and the Netherlands.
• The Employment Expectations Indicator in the EU gained 0.5 points to 112.3 and by 0.3 to 112.9 in the eurozone.