CE Barometer: Confidence sags in May

A balance figure of +3.1% of survey respondents said activity levels in May were higher than in April. This was a steep drop from last month’s balance figure of +19.4%, as there was a swing from the number of people saying activity rose to more reporting activity levels were falling month-on-month. However, the result still just stayed in positive territory.

The balance figure is the percentage of positive responses minus the percentage of negative responses.

Sentiment about the future was also positive, but at a balance of +17.3%, again there was a noticeable drop from April’s result of +40.8% of respondents saying they expected activity levels to be higher in a year’s time compared to that month.

But most striking of all was the negative balance of -3.1% of respondents who said activity levels this May were lower than they were a year ago. It was the first time this measure of confidence has been in negative territory this year.

This overall slump in confidence was reflected in the CE Climate figure – a composite number based on responses to all questions – which dropped from +26.2% in April to just +5.8% in May. Again, it was the lowest result this year, albeit one that was still in positive territory

Take part

The survey, which takes just a one minute to complete, is open to all construction professionals working in Europe. The CE Barometer survey is open from the 1^st to the 15^th of each month on our website. Full information can be found at www.cebarometer.eu