Netherlands: Business confidence jumps to record high in February
Confidence in the Dutch manufacturing sector soared to a record high in February, coming in at 10.9, which is up from the previous month’s then-record level of 10.3. Subsequently, the indicator moved further north of the crucial zero-point mark that separates optimism from pessimism among manufacturers in the Netherlands. The indicator was also notably above the long-term average of 0.7 over the past two decades.
All sub-indicators remained at elevated levels, where they have been for the last 15 months. Manufacturers’ views on output expectations in the next three months and order books improved, while views on stocks of finished products worsened—more manufacturers considered their stocks to be too small. In part due to the positive sentiment, manufacturers expected to increase their payrolls in the months ahead. In February, manufacturers in the transport equipment subsector were the most optimistic.