by Alessandra Cardone
ROME, April 24 (Xinhua) -- Confidence among both consumers and businesses decreased in Italy in April, the National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT) said on Tuesday.
The overall confidence climate index dropped from 117.5 points in March to 117.1 points in April, data showed.
The economic and future components showed an improvement, rising from 141.9 to 142.6 and from 121.1 to 121.3, respectively. At the same time, personal components among consumers decreased from 109.3 to 108, and from 115.1 to 114.
Personal expectations on unemployment also worsened, with an increase of 12.1 points to 14.6 points.
The confidence index among businesses decreased as well in April, and specifically from 105.9 points to 105.1 points, ISTAT stated in its monthly report.
In Italy's manufacturing sector, it dropped from 108.9 to 107.7, with assessments on order books and production expectations declining from -0.6 to -3.5 and from 15.2 to 14.5, respectively.
Confidence also decreased in market services and retail trade.
Construction showed an improvement in April, with confidence rising from 132.6 points to 135.2 points on a monthly basis.
Both assessments on order books construction plans and on employment expectations in this sector improved from -27.3 points to -24.3 points, and from 2.5 to 2.9, respectively, ISTAT said.
