Italy: Business confidence declines for the fifth consecutive month in November
The National Institute of Statistics (Istat)’s composite business confidence indicator (Clima di Fiducia delle Imprese Italiane, IESE)—which covers the manufacturing, construction, market services and retail sectors—edged down to 101.1 points in November from October’s revised 102.5 points (previously reported: 102.6 points), marking the worst reading since December 2016.
November’s reading was the result of a deterioration in sentiment in the manufacturing, construction and market services sectors, which more than offset improved sentiment in the retail trade sector. Confidence in the manufacturing sector deteriorated on less favorable production expectations, while confidence in the construction sector lost ground due to deteriorated assessments of order books and construction plans. Meanwhile, confidence in the market services sector went down as assessments of current sales weakened and expectations of future sales deteriorated. On the other hand, confidence in the retail sales sector improved, supported by better assessments of current sales.