Belgian business sentiment, a bellwether for the euro zone, rose slightly in January for a 10th consecutive month due to improved morale in manufacturing and business-related services. The business confidence index, often referred to as the leading indicator, increased to -7.0 from December's -7.9.

This exactly matched the average of a Reuters poll of 13 economists, whose forecasts ranged from -9.5 to -5.0. The Belgian number is often a good indication of the movement of the closely watched German Ifo business climate index, due for release next Tuesday. That is forecast to rise slightly due to a pick up of the current conditions component, with expectations barely changed. Economists said Belgian business sentiment remained below its long-term average so had room to improve, albeit not at the heady rate seen since March 2009.

Copyright Reuters, 2010