Economic confidence in the eurozone surged in August to hit a two-year high, a key survey shows, amid signs that the crisis-battered currency bloc is on the road to recovery, dpa reported. The European Commission's closely watched Economic Sentiment Indicator (ESI) rose to 95.2 points, up from 92.5 points in July. It was the fourth monthly increase in a row. The gain, which exceeded expectations, was led by sentiment upticks in all of the largest eurozone economies - Germany (+3.3), France (+1.6), Italy (+2.0), Spain (+0.8) and the Netherlands (+5.2). In the wider European Union, economic heavyweight Britain also saw confidence rise by 4.3 points. "The strong (eurozone) increase resulted from pronounced improvements in confidence among consumers and managers in industry, services and retail trade," the commission said, noting that confidence had only weakened in the construction sector.
