Business confidence in the Dutch manufacturing sector deteriorated to -2.0 in May 2026 from -0.7 in April, marking the weakest reading since last August. Expected activity dropped sharply to 4.6 from 8.4, signalling a notable weakening in the near-term production outlook, while inventory judgments worsened to -5.2 from -3.3, indicating a higher perceived stock overhang. By contrast, order position assessments improved slightly to -5.6 from -7.1, suggesting some easing in demand conditions. By sector, sentiment weakened broadly. The food and beverage industry declined (-3.0 vs -1.9), wood and building materials edged lower (-3.5 vs -3.3), while refineries and chemicals weakened further (-3.7 vs -1.6), alongside base metals and metal products (-4.1 vs -0.8). Assessments were less negative for paper and graphic products (-4.0 vs -4.9), and textile, clothing, and leather (-2.9 vs -7.9). source: Statistics Netherlands

Business Confidence in Netherlands decreased to -2 points in May from -0.70 points in April of 2026. Business Confidence in Netherlands averaged -1.76 points from 1985 until 2026, reaching an all time high of 10.50 points in October of 2021 and a record low of -31.50 points in April of 2020. This page provides - Netherlands Business Confidence - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news. Netherlands Business Confidence - data, historical chart, forecasts and calendar of releases - was last updated on June of 2026.

Business Confidence in Netherlands decreased to -2 points in May from -0.70 points in April of 2026. Business Confidence in Netherlands is expected to be -6.00 points by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. In the long-term, the Netherlands Business Confidence is projected to trend around 1.00 points in 2027, according to our econometric models.



Calendar GMT Reference Actual Previous Consensus TEForecast
2026-04-30 05:00 AM
Business Confidence
Apr -0.7 -0.7 -1
2026-05-28 07:00 AM
Business Confidence
May -2.0 -0.7 -1
2026-06-30 04:30 AM
Business Confidence
Jun -2.0 -6


Related Last Previous Unit Reference
Bankruptcies 306.00 389.00 Companies Apr 2026
Business Confidence -2.00 -0.70 points May 2026
Capacity Utilization 78.60 78.30 percent Jun 2026
Changes in Inventories -1031.00 -26.00 EUR Million Dec 2025
Industrial Production 0.80 0.20 percent Mar 2026
Industrial Production Mom 1.20 -1.60 percent Mar 2026
Manufacturing Production YoY 1.70 -0.80 percent Mar 2026
Manufacturing Production MoM 2.80 -1.60 percent Mar 2026
Mining Production -17.10 -3.00 percent Mar 2026


Netherlands Business Confidence
In Netherlands, the producer confidence survey covers 1,700 manufacturing companies and gathers up-to-date information on economic developments for all activities of the manufacturing industry. The survey covers three components: how companies evaluate their order positions, their stocks of finished products in the month under review and the anticipated economic activity for the next three months. The index is calculated as the percentage of positive answers minus the percentage of negative answers. Therefore, the indicator varies from -100 (all participants evaluate their situation as poor and expect it to become worse) to 100 (all companies are happy with current situation and expect it to improve); 0 indicates neutrality.
Actual Previous Highest Lowest Dates Unit Frequency
-2.00 -0.70 10.50 -31.50 1985 - 2026 points Monthly

News Stream
Dutch Business Mood Weakest in 9 Months
Business confidence in the Dutch manufacturing sector deteriorated to -2.0 in May 2026 from -0.7 in April, marking the weakest reading since last August. Expected activity dropped sharply to 4.6 from 8.4, signalling a notable weakening in the near-term production outlook, while inventory judgments worsened to -5.2 from -3.3, indicating a higher perceived stock overhang. By contrast, order position assessments improved slightly to -5.6 from -7.1, suggesting some easing in demand conditions. By sector, sentiment weakened broadly. The food and beverage industry declined (-3.0 vs -1.9), wood and building materials edged lower (-3.5 vs -3.3), while refineries and chemicals weakened further (-3.7 vs -1.6), alongside base metals and metal products (-4.1 vs -0.8). Assessments were less negative for paper and graphic products (-4.0 vs -4.9), and textile, clothing, and leather (-2.9 vs -7.9).
2026-05-28
Dutch Business Mood Steady in April
Business confidence in the manufacturing sector in the Netherlands stood at -0.7 in April 2026, unchanged from the previous month. Order position assessments inched up to -7.1 from -7.2, while sentiment regarding stock levels improved to -3.3 from -4.9 in March. Meanwhile, expected activity declined to 8.4 from 10.1, indicating weaker optimism about near-term production. By sector, sentiment improved in food and beverage (-1.9 vs -4.5), textile, clothing, and leather (-7.9 vs -11.1), paper and graphic products (-4.9 vs -7.6), and refineries and chemicals (-1.6 vs -5.2). On the other hand, these gains were offset as the outlook turned pessimistic in base metals and metal products (-0.8 vs 1.7) and other industry and repair (-1.4 vs 1.3). Sentiment also weakened in transport equipment (1.5 vs 2.7) and electrical engineering and machinery (2.7 vs 4.6).
2026-04-30
Dutch Business Confidence Improves in March
Business confidence in the Netherlands’ manufacturing sector fell to -0.7 in March 2026, easing from -1.1 in the previous month. Expected activity rose to 10.1 from 7.0, indicating optimism about near-term production. In contrast, order position assessments weakened to -7.2 from -6.5, and stock judgments declined to -4.9 from -3.9 in February. By sector, outlook improved in refineries and chemicals (-5.2 vs -5.5), while the base metal and metal products industry (1.7 vs -5.5) and transport equipment (2.7 vs -1.3) moved into positive territory. On the other hand, sentiment weakened further in the textile, clothing, and leather industry (-11.1 vs 7.0), food and beverages (-4.5 vs 3.5), and paper and graphic industry (-7.6 vs -4.2). Outlook also became less optimistic in electrical engineering and machinery (4.6 vs 5.9) and other industry and repair (1.3 vs 1.6).
2026-03-30