FX.co ★ Dutch Business Morale at 1-Year Low

In April 2025, business confidence in the Netherlands declined to -3.3, down from -1.5 in March, further distancing itself from the twenty-year average of -1.3. This represents the most subdued sentiment since April of the previous year. Dutch firms expressed growing pessimism about their finished product inventories, with an index move from -4.9 to -5.9, and their order books, dropping from -9.5 to -9.9. Additionally, the three-month outlook for expected production saw a downturn, declining to 5.9 from 10, marking its lowest point since the same period the year before. Confidence among producers was predominantly negative across nearly all sectors, with the sharpest decline observed among manufacturers in the textile, clothing, and leather sectors. The "other industry" sector, which comprises furniture manufacturing and the repair and installation of machinery, was the sole segment with a positive outlook.