Business confidence in Belgium

Banco Nacional de Belgica · Monthly · Importance 55

-15.9 (Jul-26) ABS · balance · Mensual · CSV

About this indicator

Source	NBB / Eurostat (DG ECFIN BCS, Industrial Confidence Indicator)
Frequency	Monthly
Release	Habitualmente en la segunda quincena del mes de referencia.
What it is	Business confidence measures how Belgian firms assess the current economic situation and their expectations for the coming months. It is compiled by the National Bank of Belgium (NBB) and is a leading indicator of the economic cycle that is closely followed across the euro area.
How it's calculated	It is built from a monthly survey of managers across sectors (manufacturing, construction, trade and services), with questions on business conditions, order books, stocks and expectations. The headline indicator is a seasonally adjusted balance between favourable and unfavourable replies.
Market implications	Business confidence is closely tied to output and investment and, being released ahead of the official figures, helps anticipate GDP developments. Given Belgium's central position in European industry, it is used as an early bellwether for the euro area.
Limitations	Being based on sentiment surveys, it is subject to sampling error and to factors unrelated to real activity; it reflects perceptions that do not always materialise. The NBB may revise the figure when the seasonal adjustment is recalculated.