Confidence in the European economy fell slightly in December but not by as much as economists had expected in the euro zone, a new European Union survey shows today.
The European Commission's euro zone economic sentiment indicator slipped in December to 104.7 points from 104.8 points in November. But the decline was not as sharp as the 104 points economists had forecast.
However, confidence in the economy of the 27-member EU fell more markedly, easing back to 107.1 points in December from 107.5 points in November, the EU's executive arm said.
Among Europe's biggest economies, confidence deteriorated sharply in Britain, Spain and France and less so in Germany and Poland while Italy saw a marked improvement.
The European Commission said weaker confidence in the industry, retail trade, and construction sectors drove the overall decline across Europe while consumer confidence also eased in the euro zone.
A separate euro zone business climate indicator from the European Commission also fell slightly, easing to 0.92 points in December from 1.03 points in November.
Meanwhile, euro zone unemployment held steady in November compared to October at a record low of 7.2% of the workforce, according to official EU data released today.
The rate, which the European Union's Eurostat data agency adjusted to take seasonal variations into account, is the lowest on its books going back to 1993.
