Dutch Consumer Confidence Weakens, Jobless Rate Remains Stable

(RTTNews) - Consumers in the Netherlands remained slightly more negative in February, while the unemployment rate held steady for the fourth straight month in January, separate reports from the Central Bureau of Statistics showed on Thursday.

The consumer confidence index dropped to -24 in February from -23 in January. Further, the indicator in February was well below the 20-year average of -11 points.

The economic climate sub-indicator worsened to -42 in February from -40 in the prior month as consumers were more pessimistic about the economic outlook for the next twelve months.

The index measuring willingness to buy stood at -11 in February, up slightly from -12 in January. Households were equally negative about making large purchases in February as they were in January.

Separate official data showed that the seasonally adjusted jobless rate was 4.0 percent in January, the same as in the previous four months. A year ago, it was 3.8 percent.

The number of unemployed people rose to 415,000 in January from 410,000 in December.