Confidence among Dutch entrepreneurs weakened in August to the lowest level in nearly one-and-a-half years, data from the Central Bureau of Statistics showed on Tuesday.
The producer sentiment index fell to 4.6 in August from 8.4 in July. Further, this was the lowest reading since March 2021, when it was 3.4.
However, this was well above the long-term average score of 1.0.
In August, entrepreneurs were less positive about the order position and expected activity, the agency said.
The index reflects expected business activity in the next three months fell notably to 0.5 in August from 2.9 in July, and the order position index dropped from 21.0 to 18.6.
The positivism about stocks of finished products turned into negativism in August, with the respective index falling to -5.4 from 1.3.
Almost all industries experienced lower producer confidence in August than a month earlier, except for the food and tobacco industries.
