According to the report from the European Commission, in February the eurozone economic sentiment index rose to 114.0 points from 112.7 points in January. Economists had expected the index to rise only to 113.1 points. Meanwhile, the employment expectations index increased to 116.2 points from 113.6 points in January, and reached the lowest level since May 2000.
The European Commission reported that the economic sentiment index of the European Union rose to 112.8 points from 111.6 points in January. The increase in the index was caused by an increase in confidence in services, retail and construction, while confidence remained virtually unchanged in industry. The industrial confidence index rose only 0.1 points, approaching record highs. The index of confidence in the service sector increased by 3.5 points against the background of improved assessments of the past business situation, past demand and, in particular, expected demand. Meanwhile, the eurozone consumer confidence index fell to -8.8 points from -8.5 points in January. The retail confidence index rose by 1.7 points on the back of an improvement in the expected business situation of managers. The index of confidence in construction increased by 1.2 points, which was helped by an improvement in managers' expectations regarding employment.