Economic sentiment within the European Union (EU) has improved during October 2010, new figures reveal.

Data published by the EU shows that optimism rose by 0.5 percentage points across the 27 member states and by 0.9 percentage points during the month in the eurozone.

In both areas, the EU Economic Sentiment Indicator (ESI) now stands at 104.1, above the long term average for the index.

Meanwhile, companies and individuals in industry were more positive this month about employment prospects in the region, particularly among countries using the euro.

The business and consumer survey also revealed that the most significant increase in sentiment was seen in France, where it was 3.4 percentage points higher, and the Netherlands (+2.8), while a fall of 0.2 percentage points was recorded in Spain.

According to the Brussels figures, industry sentiment was up by two points among those nations that have adopted the euro and one point within the EU as a whole, driving forward confidence gains.

Data from Eurostat show that employment in the EU dipped from 65.9 per cent in 2008 to 64.6 per cent last year.

Posted by Kate Griffin