Improvement in the economic climate in January, driven by industry and construction, states IOBE in the results of the economic situation survey for December 2023.

It is noted that the economic climate index in Greece in the first month of 2024 was formed to 107.2 points from 105.8 points in Decemberwhile in the rest of Europe, on average, the corresponding indicators remain unchanged.

According to the results of the IOBE economic situation survey on the individual business indicators, a strong improvement in expectations is recorded in construction and milder in industry, while a marginal decline is noted in the rest of the sectors. At the same time, the consumer confidence index corrects the increase of the holiday season and decreases to the level of November.

“Although there are strong uncertainties in international trade, the domestic industry seems to expect a relative improvement of its dynamics, while constructions are also moving strongly upwards, with accelerated investments and a significant amount of backlog of projects. In households, despite the slight de-escalation of inflation, the pressure from the general rise in the price level remains, and inflation is expected to remain a problem this year as well despite the rise in interest rates that has taken place. However, the prolonged relative summer, during most of the month, continues to soften the impact of energy costs on households”, the IOBE research points out.

Overall, expectations remain for a positive course of the economy, with an increase in investments that will have a positive effect on the market and a decrease in unemployment in 2024.

In more detail:

  • in manufacturing, the negative balance of estimates for orders and demand strengthened, but estimates for inventories were scaled back, while positive forecasts for production in the coming months improved significantly.
  • in construction, the negative forecasts for business work programs were significantly reduced, while at the same time the positive forecasts for employment remained unchanged.
  • in retail trade, current sales estimates are falling, with inventory levels unchanged, while forecasts for near-term sales growth are weakening sharply.
  • in services, the positive estimates for the current state of business declined significantly, as did those for demand, while on the contrary, forecasts for the short-term evolution of demand improved slightly.
  • in consumer confidence, households’ negative forecasts for the country’s economic situation strengthened, as did the corresponding ones for their own economic situation. At the same time, forecasts for major markets weakened marginally and the intention to save declined.