Confidence in the eurozone among business and consumers has continued to build, topping its highest point in more than four years.
Positive sentiment was found in all major industries, except for the construction sector. Encouragingly, the employment expectations were good among manufacturers, services companies and retailers.
The gauge, set by the European Commission, reached the best level since the euro suffered a dramatic tumble in June 2011. The confidence measured appears to override fears over the Greek crisis, the euro’s future, and another global recession sparked by China’s falling economic prospects.
Confidence also began to return in Greece, despite its many recent setbacks, ending a period of six months of consecutive decline in outlook.
As ever, growth was led by Germany, although analysts warn that the survey was conducted before the VW emission-rigging scandal and the country’s economy may suffer some hard knocks as a result.
A weaker euro and lower oil prices punched up spending power. Consumer perceptions of this being a good time to spend on major purchases rose to a 14-year high.
Analysts remained cautious, however. On the one hand, some suggest eurozone growth in GDP could rise to nearly 2% in the third quarter, after a jump of 1.5% from April to June.
On the other hand, none were giving a guarantee that the region’s economy was out of the woods yet.
