Eurozone economic confidence weakened unexpectedly in June, suggesting that the economy remains weak, survey data published by the European Commission showed on Thursday.
The economic confidence index posted 95.9 in June, down from 96.1 in May. The reading was forecast to rise slightly to 96.2.
The score largely reflected broadly stable sentiment in industry, and among consumers and service providers, while confidence in construction and retail deteriorated from May.
The industrial confidence index unexpectedly weakened to -10.1 in June from -9.9 in May. The score was forecast to rise to -9.6.
The services sentiment index posted 6.5 in June, down from 6.8 a month ago. The reading was seen at 6.4.
At -14.0, the consumer confidence index was up from -14.3 in the previous month. The score also matched the flash estimate.
The retail trade sentiment index deteriorated to -7.8 from -6.8 in May. Likewise, the construction confidence index declined to -7.0 from -6.2 in the prior month.
The survey showed that economic uncertainty indicator weakened further in June. The corresponding index slid to 18.0 in June from 18.5 in May.
The employment expectations indicator dropped to 99.7 from 101.3 in May. The decrease reflects markedly lower employment plans in retail trade and construction and services.
Capital Economics’ economist Lily Millard said the economic sentiment survey is consistent with weak growth in the Eurozone GDP and suggested that price pressures continued to ease in manufacturing but remained strong in the services sector.