Economic confidence in the eurozone dropped for the fourth consecutive month in June, the European Commission said on Wednesday.
The economic sentiment indicator (ESI) for the 17-nation bloc sharing the euro fell by 0.4 points to 105.1, while the monthly indicator, based on business and consumer surveys, dropped by 1.0 percent to 104.4 in the European Union (EU).
The surveys are conducted in different sectors of the economy, namely industry, services, construction and retail trade as well as among consumers.
According to the surveys, confidence in industry decreased by 0.6 points in the eurozone and by 0.8 points in the EU, due to a drop in firms' production expectations and a worsening assessment of the level of order books.
Confidence among consumers increased by 0.1 points in the eurozone but fell by 0.3 percent in the 27-member EU.
Among the seven largest economies, confidence in the Netherlands declined the most, down by 3.8 points, while Spain registered the most significant increase of 2.6 points.
Meanwhile, the business climate indicator (BCI) for the eurozone in June also fell for the fourth month in a row, the commission said in a separate survey.
Although the current level of the indicators remained high, the commission said that the drops over the past four months might suggest that the euro area industry has entered "a phase of growth moderation." /.