Euro area consumer confidence expected to bounce back in July

By Tuba Sahin

ANKARA (AA) - The Euro area consumer confidence indicator rose to minus 24.9 points in July, up 2.1 points from all time low in July, according to a flash estimate on Tuesday.

Consumer confidence in the EU also bettered by 1 point to minus 26 points on a monthly basis, the European Commission said in a statement.

Despite improvement in the continent, consumer confidence remains below its historical low at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in spring 2020, it said.

The indicator measures the level of confidence in economic activity and is used to predict consumer spending. Negative readings indicate low optimism among consumers.

The European Commission added that the economic sentiment indicator in the euro area dropped to 97.6 in August from a downwardly revised 98.9 in July. This was the lowest reading since February last year.

The ESI in EU declined 1 point to 96.5 in August.

In addition, the employment expectations indicator stabilized after two months of significant losses (up 0.4 point to 107.3 in the EU and up 0.8 point to 108 in the euro area).