Press Release: July 2005: Improvement of economic sentiment in both the EU and the euro area

The economic sentiment indicator (ESI) for the EU rose by 1.4 points in July 2005, ending its decline that had started in October 2004. In the euro area, the ESI improved by 1 point, confirming its recovery of the previous month. The evolution of the euro exchange rate, the recent stabilisation of oil prices and an incipient upturn in the global growth cycle were likely to be the main factors behind this recovery.