Eurozone consumer confidence falls in July after Brexit vote

[BRUSSELS] Eurozone and European Union consumer confidence fell markedly in July, the European Commission said on Wednesday releasing its monthly indicator, in a new sign of weaker morale after the 23 June British vote to leave the European Union.

The Commission's flash estimate showed eurozone consumer morale decreased by 0.7 points to -7.9 in July from an upwardly revised -7.2 in June. The June figure was previously estimated at -7.3.

Economists polled by Reuters had estimated a slightly higher drop, forecasting a consumer confidence fall to -8.0 in July.

The marked drop in July follows a slight fall in June and two consecutive rises in April and May.

The figures for the European Union as a whole showed a much worse drop of 1.8 points to -7.6, a level not seen in two years. The indicator for the bloc as a whole is now below the eurozone indicator for the first time in years.

The estimates released by the Commission confirm the post-Brexit vote downward confidence trend already seen in Germany on Tuesday when the Mannheim-based ZEW institute said its economic sentiment index sank to -6.8 points in July from 19.2 in June.

REUTERS