Economic sentiment in Cyprus deteriorated marginally this month as the Economic Sentiment Indicator (ESI-CypERC) decreased by 0.1 point compared with January 2021.
The decrease in the ESI-CypERC was mainly driven by weaker business confidence in services, according to the Business and Consumer Surveys of the University of Cyprus Economics Research Centre.
The decrease in the Services Confidence Indicator resulted from firms’ less favourable views on their past business situation and past demand, despite improved demand expectations.
The Retail Trade Confidence Indicator declined marginally due to downward revisions in sales expectations, despite more favourable views on recent sales.
The Construction Confidence Indicator remained unchanged as improved assessments of the level of order books were offset by downward revisions in employment expectations.
The marginal decrease in the Industry Confidence Indicator was mainly due to more pessimistic production expectations.
The small improvement in the Consumer Confidence Indicator resulted from upward revisions in consumers’ expectations about their financial conditions and the economic conditions in Cyprus over the next 12 months.
(CNA)
