The 16 countries that share the euro saw an increasing influx of capital from abroad during the last month of 2010 despite ongoing concern over the region’s sovereign debt crisis, according to The Wall Street Journal. On Thursday, the European Central Bank reported that net portfolio inflows for the region rose to €37.5 billion in December from €13.1 billion the month before. Investors were largely unphased by the sovereign debt woes plaguing peripheral economies, with inflows into debt instruments totaling €28.7 billion, which is the most since May and comes after €26.2 billion the month prior.
Meanwhile, the European Commission reported that consumer sentiment in the 17 countries using the euro increased to -9.9 in February from -11.2 the month prior, which begins to reverse two consecutive months of declines. However, the index remains below zero, indicating that consumers still have a generally negative view of the economy. Separately, the ECB said that the region’s current-account deficit grew to a seasonally adjusted €13.3 billion in December from €10.5 billion the month before, which brought the full-year current-account deficit for 2010 to €56.4 billion from €51.4 billion the previous year.
