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Lack of confidence

August 30, 2011

The European Commission's closely-watched Economic Sentiment Indicator has dropped for the sixth straight month. The fall of nearly five points was the worst month-to-month drop since December 2008.

https://p.dw.com/p/12PuN
A wallet and some small change
Economic and consumer confidence continues to fallImage: picture-alliance / Tagesspiegel

Consumer and economic confidence in Europe has dropped further, according to the results of a survey released by the European Commission on Tuesday.

The Economic Sentiment Indicator (ESI) fell more than expected, from 103.2 in July to 98.3 this month. This represents the biggest month-on-month drop since the onset of the global financial crisis in December 2008.

It's also the sixth straight month the ESI has registered a drop.

Among individual nations in the eurozone, Germany recorded the sharpest drop in consumer confidence, falling from 112.7 to 107. Outside the eurozone, Britain had the biggest drop in the greater European Union, from 98.5 to 92.9.

The drop in consumer confidence likely means the European Central Bank will leave interest rates unchanged. They currently stand at 1.5 percent.

Author: Matt Zuvela (dpa, AFP)
Editor: Martin Kuebler