Eurozone consumer confidence slips in March

Consumer confidence decreased more than expected among eurozone countries in March compared to February.

EU consumer confidence decreased by 0.7 points to -7.3, while euro area confidence slipped by 0.9 points to -9.7.

The eurozone reading was worse that the small improvement to -8.15 that economists had anticipated from February's -8.8 mark.

The flash reading, which is calculated from consumer survey data from the respective countries, is the third consecutive monthly decline in confidence, with the index now at its lowest level since December 2014

March’s fall comes in spite of receding fears about the global economy in recent weeks, economist Andrew Wishart at Capital Economics noted, which suggested the lack of confidence relates largely to domestic concerns.

"On the basis of past form, confidence is now consistent with annual household spending growth of 1.1% in Q1, down from 1.5% in the last quarter of 2015."

"Looking ahead, we don’t expect consumer confidence to plummet. Much of the weakness in recent months can be attributed to falls in euro-zone equity prices, which correlate closely with confidence. Following a trough in February, however, equities have been rising which should provide some support to the index."