In the fourth quarter of 2016, the corporate expectation index dropped 8.6 points from the previous quarter to 19.3. This information was provided by ÈSOB, which monitors the sentiment of small and medium-sized entrepreneurs and companies using this indicator. The slowdown in the overall optimism was caused by uncertainty regarding the development of demand for goods and services. Other investigated areas – planned investments and business expansion – remained comparable to the previous period. Some 41% of companies expect the demand to grow in the first quarter of 2017 while 44% of the respondents expect a year-on-year increase in investments in 2017. More than one fifth of the respondents expect their business to expand. Some 59% of the respondents are satisfied with the economic situation in the Czech Republic.
Source: www.cianews.cz
