Swedish Consumers' Economic Outlook Brightens

30 Mar 2013

Swedish consumers and manufacturers became more confident in March as households took a more positive view on the prospects for the Swedish economy.

"Households' view of the economic situation has brightened considerably in recent months," the National Institute of Economic Research, or NIER, said.

NIER's closely-watched consumer confidence indicator, CCI, rose to 2.8 in March from minus 1 in February, while the level for manufacturers rose to minus 10 from minus 11 in February.

The slight rise in manufacturing confidence was in line with economists' expectations, while consumers proved more upbeat than expected. Economists polled by Dow Jones Newswires had forecast CCI to rise to 1.5 in March.

The NIER's overall indicator which includes both business and consumer sentiment rose to 95.4 in March from 95.1 in February. Despite the slight rise, the indicator indicates that growth in the Swedish economy is still weaker than normal, NIER said.

Sweden's economy recovered rapidly from the financial crisis of 2008 and 2009, but growth slowed in 2012 as the debt crisis in Europe hit demand for Swedish exports.

Half of Sweden's gross domestic product comes from exports, with around 35% of goods shipped from Sweden going to the troubled euro zone.

Source: http://www.nasdaq.com/article/swedish-consumers-economic-outlook-brightens-20130327-00049#.UVabUxenBvA