Stats: Confidence among Entrepreneurs and Consumer in Economy Improves in April

Bratislava, April 29 (TASR) - Confidence in the economy in Slovakia improved slightly in April, with the overall seasonally adjusted Economic Sentiment Indicator (ESI) going up by 2.5 points from the previous month to 106.5, the Statistics Office reported on Monday. Confidence improved in four of the five indicators, especially among entrepreneurs engaged in industry, trade and construction and among consumers. Conversely, confidence worsened among entrepreneurs engaged in services. The overall figure is 3.8 points more optimistic than in the same period of last year, and it improved by 0.5 points when compared to the long-term average. After seasonal adjustments, the confidence indicator in industry showed the fastest growth of 6 points to -0.3 in April. The growth chiefly resulted from increases in orders and growth in expected output in the upcoming three months. The confidence indicator in trade rose by 4.4 points from March to stand at 9.7. Respondents mainly evaluated positively the current trend in business activities. They also expected an increase in the volume of demand. After seasonal adjustments, the confidence indicator in construction increased by 3.5 points to -7.5 in April under the influence of more positive evaluations of the overall level of orders. Conversely, the confidence indicator in services fell by 3 points to 15.3. Confidence among consumers slightly improved in April, with the indicator going up by 2.4 points to -8.6, thus exceeding the long-term average by 11.6 points. Consumers were more optimistic in their expectations regarding the financial situation of households and developments in unemployment. They were also slightly more optimistic regarding the overall economic situation and expected savings. ko/df