Italy: Consumer confidence gains some ground in January
The consumer confidence index released by the National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT) rose to 114.0 points in January from December’s revised 113.2 points (previously reported: 113.1 points), which had marked the worst result since August 2017.
Consumers’ assessments of the current general economic situation improved, likely due to the agreement reached with the European Commission over the 2019 budget. Meanwhile, their expectations on unemployment, on their future personal economic situation and their outlook on future saving potential got somewhat rosier. Additionally, consumers’ willingness to buy big-ticket items also increased. On the other hand, consumers’ expectations of the future general economic situation and their assessments of their current personal economic situation deteriorated.