Romania’s ESI confidence index hits highest level in five years before elections
<p>The confidence indicator in the Romanian economy (ESI) remained in November at the highest level in the last 5 years, for the second month in a row, against the background of better assessments of managers in the trade sector and especially the increase in consumer optimism before the presidential and parliamentary elections, <a href="https://www.profit.ro/stiri/economie/grafice-increderea-in-economie-se-mentine-la-cel-mai-ridicat-nivel-din-ultimii-5-ani-in-noiembrie-consumatorii-sunt-mai-optimisti-21851375?mc_cid=c080868cb1&amp;mc_eid=cd1f92f96c" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Profit.ro</a> reported.</p>

<p>The performance comes against difficult macroeconomic circumstances, with the year’s GDP growth expectations plummeting below 1% and a painful fiscal corrective package (yet not sketched) ahead.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Indeed, private consumption remains surprisingly robust, driven by higher incomes, lower interest rates, and rampant consumer lending.</p>

<p>The confidence index in the economy (economic sentiment indicator - ESI) remained at 105.9 points, a level also recorded in October, the highest since the COVID-19 pandemic.</p>

<p>The ESI is calculated by the European Commission based on the responses of managers in the main sectors of the economy, as well as consumers, and has a high degree of correlation with the evolution of the gross domestic product. A value above 100 points generally indicates that the economy is growing, while one below this level shows a contraction.</p>

<p><em>iulian@romania-insider.com</em></p>

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