Surprise hike in eurozone confidence

Eurozone economic confidence unexpectedly increased in July, led by industry and construction, even as price growth remained anaemic and geopolitical tensions threatened to undermine the currency bloc’s recovery.

An index of executive and consumer sentiment rose to 102.2 from a revised 102.1 in June, the European Commission in Brussels said yesterday. The median forecast in a Bloomberg News survey of 27 economists was for a drop to 101.9.

“Business and consumer confidence has gradually picked up since the crisis,” said Timo del Carpio, an economist at RBC Capital Markets in London.