Belgium: Economic sentiment picks up in May
Economic sentiment rose to 93.7 in May from April’s 92.7. However, the index remained below the long-term average of 100, pointing to a muted near-term outlook for the economy.
The headline print reflected stronger sentiment in the industrial and construction sectors. That said, confidence in the services sector and sentiment in the retail sector deteriorated in May. Lastly, consumer confidence weakened.
Relating to indicators that are not used to calculate the index, employment expectations declined, while the economic uncertainty index improved in May.