Euro-zone economic sentiment deteriorated slightly in April, defying forecasts of further improvement, while inflation expectations continued to fall, European Commission data showed on Tuesday.
The monthly Commission survey showed that economic sentiment in the 18 countries sharing the euro eased to 102.0 in April from 102.5 in March, mainly because of a dip in confidence in the construction sector and in services.
Economists polled by Reuters had expected an improvement to 103.0 in April.
But some economists said the decline could be just a blip as it followed 11 monthly improvements.
Others said the decline could be a sign of the risks that the euro-zone recovery faced.
The Commission survey also showed that the indicator of consumers' inflation expectations for the next 12 months fell to 7.5 points in April from 10.8 in March, continuing a steady decline since last October.
Selling price expectations among manufacturers also fell, to -1.4 in April from -0.7 in March and -0.2 in February.
The expectations are important because inflation has been stuck in what the European Central Bank calls the "danger zone" below 1% year-on-year since October, mainly because of falling energy prices and food and the appreciation of the euro.
