The European Commission's economic sentiment indicator suggests that "the euro zone is past the worst"
- Howard Archer, chief European economist at IHS Global Insight
Economic confidence in the single currency bloc rose more than expected in February, a sign the economy is recovering after a contraction in the fourth quarter.
An index of executive and consumer sentiment in the euro area rose to 94.4 from 93.4 in January, the European Commission in Brussels said on Tuesday.
Today's report suggests that "the euro zone is past the worst," said Howard Archer, chief European economist at IHS Global Insight in London.
"Even so, sentiment is still at a pretty low level and the euro zone is far from out of the economic woods."
"There are few signs here that a burst of economic growth is going to help to solve the debt crisis," said Jonathan Loynes, chief European economist at Capital Economics.
"The indicator is still well below the levels seen throughout most of last year and consistent, on past form, with broadly stagnant GDP."
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