The economic climate in the Netherlands deteriorated further in December, even though eight of 13 key indicators are performing above their long term trend, according to national statistics agency CBS.

The latest edition of the CBS business cycle tracker showed that both consumer and producer confidence is improving, although consumer confidence is still ‘exceptionally low’ and remains well below the long-term average over the past two decades.

Households spent 0.6% more in October 2022 year on year, adjusted for price changes and differences in the shopping days. As in the previous months, they spent more on services, but less on goods, the CBS said.

The number of corporate bankruptcies, adjusted for court session days, increased slightly but remains low compared to the period before the outbreak of coronavirus.

The CBS’s revised economic growth estimate for the third quarter shows a drop of 0.2 percentage point quarter on quarter, mainly due to lower investments in building housing and infrastructure.

Read the full report (in English)

Economists have predicted the Netherlands will be in a slight recession at the end of the year. And earlier this month, the government’s macro-economic policy unit CPB said plans to cap energy prices will dampen the impact of higher fuel costs but the average household in the Netherlands will still have about 4% less to spend in 2023.