EU consumer confidence plunged during the GFC and again in 2011/12 during the European debt crisis. Since early 2014 it has been at an average of above levels, rising to a cyclical peak at the beginning of 2018. It then dropped back significantly in December 2018, albeit to still-elevated levels, at about the same time as doubts emerged over the US economy’s robustness. Since then, it has slowly been recovering.
The latest survey conducted by the European Commission indicates EU households have continued to remain quite optimistic in the face of low GDP growth rates and high unemployment rates in some large EU countries such as France, Spain and Italy. The latest reading produced a small gain in the EC’s Consumer Confidence indicator as it increased from April’s revised figure of -7.3 in April to -6.5.
