According to data published by the European Commission the Estonian business confidence index was 102.4 points in March, 0.7 points lower than in the previous month, the Estonian Institute of Economic Research (EKI) said.
Estonian business confidence weakens in March
28th March 2013, 14:59
Please note that the article is more than five years old and belongs to our archive. We do not update the content of the archives, so it may be necessary to consult newer sources.
The seasonally adjusted figures show that confidence has improved among construction companies and consumers, whereas in the service, retail trade and industrial sectors the sentiment has deteriorated.
Confidence weakened also across the European Union and in the eurozone. The Economic Sentiment Indicator (ESI) of the EU27 was 91.4 points, down by 0.6 points from February, and in the eurozone it fell 1.1 points to 90.0 points.
In March the indicator was above 100 points representing the long-term average only in the three Baltic states, Germany and Malta.
Countries that are the main destinations for Estonian exports boasted higher business confidence than the EU average. The value of the index for Latvia was 105.2 points, down 0.9 points during the month, for Lithuania it was 103.9 (+0.9), for Sweden 99.8 (+1.1), and for Finland 94.3 (+0.5).