It was a mixed bag of economic releases yesterday. Business confidence for the eurozone as a whole fell slightly below expectations, but industrial sentiment did improve more than expected – although it is still in the negative. French GDP growth came in at 0.3% this morning, as forecasted, marking a slight dip from the previous quarter.
The rift between Brussels and Rome over the latter’s budget continues, with reports that Italy is being threatened with a fine of €3 billion. The ECB’s Vice-President, Luis de Guindos, showed no sign of backing down in an interview yesterday with CNBC, saying that ‘the recipe for Italy is quite, quite obvious. They have to respect the fiscal rules.’
