Euro zone sentiment jumps more than expected in August

Euro zone economic sentiment jumped more than expected in August thanks to more optimism in the industry and service sectors and among consumers, monthly survey data from the European Commission showed on Wednesday.

The Commission`s economic sentiment index for the 19 countries sharing the euro rose to 111.9 in August from an upwardly revised 111.3 in July, beating expectations of economists polled by Reuters of a 111.3 reading.

The Commission`s business climate index, which points to the phase of the business cycle, also recovered from a dip in July, rising to 1.09 in August from a revised 1.04.

Optimism in industry rose to 5.1 this month from 4.5 in July and rose in the services sector, which is responsible for more than two thirds of euro zone economic growth, to 14.9 from 14.2, well above the long-term average of 9.5.

Consumers were also more upbeat, with the index in that sector rising to -1.5 in August from -1.7 in July.

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