The National Bank of Belgium's (BNB) business barometer fell slightly in May, crippled by a deterioration of the business climate in the company services sector, indicated Thursday the BNB. The overall gross synthetic curve is down by 0.8 points compared to April, to sit at 0.2 points. However, it remains way above its average of -7.2 since 1980.
“In company services, confidence among entrepreneurs is still up and down. The high upward revision in April of the business activities perspectives was practically neutralized by this month’s decline. To a lesser extent, the overall market forecast is also more pessimistic,’’ comments the BNB.
In retail, the market trend is also wavering. After a deterioration in April, the business climate improved slightly in May.
In construction work, where the trend is still favorably oriented, the modest improvement which was recorded this month is almost entirely attributed to a vigorous progression in the orders.
Lastly, a status quo is observed in the manufacturing industry.
The smoothed overall synthetic curve, which reflects the underlying trend of activity, has also slightly decreased (by 0.6 points).
The Brussels Times
