Euro Area: Economic sentiment improves in May
Economic sentiment rose to 96.0 in May from April’s 95.6. As a result, the index the long-term average of 100, pointing to a near-term outlook for the economy.
The headline print reflected improved sentiment in the industrial and services sector. Moreover, consumer confidence strengthened. Meanwhile, sentiment in the retail sector remained stable in the surveyed month. On the flip side, confidence in the construction sector weakened in May.
In terms of specific countries, sentiment improved in France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands, while it deteriorated in Spain.
Regarding indicators that are not used to calculate the index, employment expectations weakened, while the economic uncertainty index fell in May.