Activity surveys point to faster growth

Activity surveys suggest that economic growth in the largest Nordic and Swiss economies is set to pick up. In Switzerland, the KOF Business Barometer points to annual GDP growth rising from Q4’s 0.6% to around 2.5%. In Sweden, the NIER Economic Tendency Indicator has weakened a little recently, but is still consistent with a sharp acceleration in growth. In Norway, firms’ output expectations as reported in the central bank’s regional survey point to annual mainland growth speeding up to about 2%, its fastest pace since mid-2014. The Finnish economy also seems to be turning a corner. And while consumer confidence in Iceland has edged down this year, it nonetheless signals continued rapid rates of economic expansion. Denmark appears to be the group’s laggard, with economic sentiment pointing to a slight slowdown in annual growth to about 1%.