Peru: Business sentiment falls into pessimistic territory in December
Business confidence dropped to 49.5 in December, down from November’s 52.8 and ending a run of seven consecutive months of improving sentiment. As such, the indicator moved below the 50-point threshold that separates pessimism from optimism among firms for the first time since September.
The moderation in firms’ expectations was broad-based in December, and likely driven by the spike in Covid-19 cases both domestically and in key international markets during the month. As such, firms’ views regarding their sector, the labor market, company investment and the company’s financial situation all deteriorated. However, despite worsening, perceptions of future demand for their products remained in pessimistic territory.