Consumer confidence virtually unchanged
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In February 2006 consumer confidence, seasonally corrected, was virtually the same as in the previous month. Since the summer of 2005, Dutch consumer confidence has gradually improved. Pessimists, however, still outnumber the optimists.
Consumers’ opinions about the economic climate hardly changed in February in comparison with the month before. Their opinions about the economic situation in the last twelve months as well as the coming twelve months remained virtually the same.
The indicator reflecting Dutch consumers’ willingness to buy also remained more or less at the same level. Consumers were more negative about their own financial situation over the past year. On the other hand, they were less pessimistic about their own financial situation in the next twelve months to come. They were also a bit less negative in February with respect to buying expensive items.
Developments in Dutch consumer confidence are on a par with developments in the Euro-zone. The European consumer confidence indicator used by the European Commission (EC) also shows a slightly upward trend since the summer of 2005. The definition used by the European Commission differs from the one used in the Netherlands and only takes into account questions referring to consumers’ future expectations.