December 29, 2022
After declining since May of this year, the business confidence indicator recovered somewhat in December.
The business climate visibly improved in retail trade and, to a lesser extent, in the other sectors.
The sharp improvement in the trade sector can be attributed to improved demand expectations and more positive expectations of supplier orders.
In the manufacturing industry, business leaders assessed their stock levels more favourably and expressed more positive views on the current level of total order books. Employment expectations also improved while demand expectations, after a resurgence last month, deteriorated again.
The recovery of confidence in the business-related services sector can be attributed to a significantly more positive assessment of the current level of activity and a slight upturn in the outlook in this regard.
In the building industry, where the business situation remained virtually stable, business leaders reported a more intensive use of equipment. However, demand expectations fell slightly this month. Influenced by the results of previous months, the overall smoothed synthetic curve, which reflects the underlying economic trend, continues to decline.
Source: National Bank of Belgium
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