This was the eighth consecutive rise in the index, reaching levels last seen two years ago. The monthly survey conducted by the University of Cyprus Economic Research Centre said that the improved climate among consumers aspires from “a lesser negative projection for the economic situation in Cyprus, including unemployment, and households in the next 12 months.” The improvement in the retail trade and in the manufacturing sector is more related to the favourable anticipation for demand and output over the next three months, while an improvement in construction is based on fewer negative assessments as regards employment in the sector.

“Even though the projections for turnover over the next quarter showed a marginal improvement, the economic climate in the services sector showed some deterioration due to the unfavourable projections regarding demand and the economic situation of companies,” the survey said. “The fact that both business and consumer projections have been marked as lesser negative suggests a containment of the level of recession for 2014,” the survey concluded.

Source: Financial Mirror