The indicator of economic sentiment or business sentiment, the ZEW index for the Eurozone, rebounded to 2.3 points in October this year 2023 from the previous negative value, which was -8.9 points in the previous month of September this year 2023, which is a better result than market expectations of -8. In this case, it is the highest value since this April of 2023, when 53.7% of the surveyed analysts anticipate the stability of economic activity in countries paying with the euro (EUR) as their national currency. However, despite these indicators, there was no significant strengthening of the euro against the US dollar (USD) or other major world currencies.
Currently, during the European afternoon of Tuesday, October 17, 2023, at approximately 14:12 CET, the so-called global currency pair of the single European currency, the euro (EUR) and the US dollar (USD), as the world’s reserve currency, was traded as part of forex operations the foreign exchange market in the mutual exchange rate at a value of 1.057 USD per EUR with the daily strengthening of the EUR by + 0.11% against the USD. The European currency Euro (EUR) then strengthened against the British Pound (GBP) slightly more than against the USD, when on the indicated day and time their mutual exchange rate was 0.868 GBP/EUR with the EUR strengthening by +0.47% so far exchange rate against GBP. These rates were achieved in a situation where the USD exchange value according to the DXY (US Dollar Currency Index) dollar index (US Dollar Currency Index) on the indicated day and time was at the point value of 106.22 USD points with a daily decrease of -0.02% of the point value so far according to this index.
The ZEW Economic Sentiment Index in the Eurozone measures analysts’ level of optimism regarding expected economic developments in the next 6 months. The survey includes up to 350 financial and economic analysts. The index is constructed as the difference between the percentage of analysts who are optimistic and the percentage of analysts who are pessimistic about the development of the economy. Thus, the ZEW indicator measures confidence on a scale of -100 (all analysts expect the economy to deteriorate) to 100 (all analysts expect it to improve). A value of 0 means neutrality. ZEW stands for Zentrum für Europäische Wirtschaftsforschung, which translates to Center for European Economic Research. Since this is a sentiment indicator, double digits are not uncommon. In 2018, for example, the ZEW economic sentiment indicator went from a positive value of 20.4 to -25 within seven months. Economic sentiment indicators are a popular means of measuring and predicting trends in the economy and financial markets.
The ZEW Economic Sentiment Indicator is an important tool for understanding the overall sentiment of financial market experts and their expectations for the economy. As a leading economic indicator, the ZEW index provides valuable insights into the potential direction of economic growth, which can be the basis for investment decisions, policy making and business planning. The ZEW indicator is respected for its economic research and is the leading source of economic data and analysis in Europe. The ZEW Economic Sentiment Indicator is published monthly, usually on the second or third Tuesday of the month. Today’s current data from 17/10/2023, according to economic correspondents in connection with analysts of brokerage companies and financial strategists of investment banks, showed a positive sentiment in the eurozone, which, if properly supported by the monetary policy of the central bankers of the eurozone, namely the European Central Bank (ECB-European Central Bank) can have a positive effect on the growth of the EUR exchange value.
