Sentix index shows sharp increase in confidence in six-month outlook throughout eurozone, led by ECB measures
Investor sentiment in eurozone countries has risen for a third consecutive month following the European Central Bank’s (ECB) adoption of stimulus measures to help fight the zone’s sovereign debt crisis, the US’ apparent readiness to tackle its debt and the Chinese government showing positive signs, according to the Sentix economic index.
The investor sentiment index has climbed to -18.8 points in November from -24.4 points in October, according to the monthly Sentix survey of 887 investors in the region. The overall index for the euro area has recovered steadily from a low of -30.3 in August.
The index that rates the current economic situation in the eurozone has increased to -31.3 in November from -34.5 last month and a low of -37.0 in August, Germany-based Sentix says. At the same time, the index rating investors’ outlook for the next six months has risen to -5.5 points, from -9.0 in September and -23.3 in August.
‘The lack of negative reports around the crisis of the eurozone may have made investors more confident – more confident also toward the impact of the measures to save the euro drawn up by ECB president Mario Draghi this summer,’ writes Sentix senior analyst Sebastian Wanke.
‘Additionally, the two largest economies in the world give us some hope these days: in the US, the presidential elections are nigh, after which the country’s debt issues can be tackled. For the Chinese economy, expectations toward the new political elite are on the rise as well. Also, the latest Chinese economic measures are showing their first positive effects.’
The Sentix overall investor sentiment in Germany, meanwhile, has increased to 9.4 points in November from 6.4 points in October. The institutional investors’ assessment of the current economic situation in Germany has risen to 26.2 points from 23.2 points and expectations for the coming six months are up to -6.1 from -9.2 points.
For Germany, Sentix also maintains a separate index measuring sentiment among individual investors, as opposed to institutional investors. That index has risen to 23.4 points in November from 20.4 in October with regards to the current situation. The six-month outlook of individual investors has climbed to -7.8 from -8.8 points, Sentix says.
The Sentix global index has turned positive in November, rising to 6.2 points from -0.6 points in October. The assessment of the current situation has increased to 5.4 points from -1.2 points, while the six-month outlook has grown to 7.0 points from 0.0. The Sentix survey was completed before the November 6 US elections that returned President Barack Obama to power for a second term.
