(Bloomberg) --
Euro-area consumer confidence dropped sharply this month, a worrying development for a region that's counting on domestic demand to offset weakness in manufacturing and global trade.
The European Commission's monthly index fell 1.1 points to -7.6, the lowest since December. That was a far deeper drop than the decline to -6.8 forecast by economists.
The European Central Bank, which unveiled a new round of monetary stimulus in September, holds its next policy meeting on Thursday. It will be the last for President Mario Draghi before he retires. That day also sees the release of the flash Purchasing Managers' Index for the euro area, forecast to show growth in services in October, but a continued contraction in manufacturing.
--With assistance from Kristian Siedenburg.
To contact the reporter on this story: Fergal O'Brien in Zurich at fobrien@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Craig Stirling at cstirling1@bloomberg.net, Catherine Bosley
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