ROME: A key gauge of business confidence has reached its highest level since March 2008, according to Bloomberg data.
The index, produced by Italy’s National Institute for Statistics (Istat), has jumped to 103.7 for March from a revised 100.5 the previous month, exceeding economists’ expectations of a reading of 99.6.
Italy’s economy contracted for the third consecutive year in 2014 but has been showing gradual signs of improvement.
The Italian economy did not grow in the fourth quarter but this was an improvement on the 0.1 per cent contraction in the third quarter and a 0.2 per cent decline in the second.
Paris-based think tank, the OECD said recently that reforms could increase Italy’s gross domestic product by 6 per cent within the next 10 years if they are pushed through in full by the government, led by Matteo Renzi.
