The economic sentiment indicator (ESI) for the European Union (EU) and euro area saw a remarkable increase in August and September despite soaring oil prices and the devastating hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico, said the European Commission on Friday.

The indicator has now risen for four months in a row, confirming that the weakening of the economy since autumn 2004 has been reversed, said the commission, the executive body of the EU, in a report.

In the EU, the indicator rose by 1.7 points in August and September, following an increase of 1.4 points in July. In the euro area, the ESI improved by 1.1 points in August and September.

The monthly economic sentiment indicator reflects general economic activity of the EU. It combines assessments and expectations stemming from business and consumer surveys.

In both areas, the brightening of economic sentiment in August and September was due to a fairly broadly-based improvement across sectors, particularly in industry, retail trade and construction, said the commission.

Services sector confidence, however, saw a small dent in the euro area, while it remained steady in the EU.

Consumer confidence remained unchanged in both areas.

Over the two-month period, economic sentiment improved in all larger EU member states, ranging from a more moderate 0.8 points in France to a staggering 8.2 points in Poland, said the report.

The UK registered a small drop in sentiment in August, which was perhaps a reaction to the terrorist attacks in July. However, this was more than compensated by a sturdy rise of 4.0 points in September.

Source: Xinhua