ROME (Reuters) - The Italian economy is likely to slow further in the next few months after stagnating in the third quarter, national statistics bureau ISTAT said on Friday.
In its monthly economic bulletin ISTAT noted that consumer confidence fell for a fourth month running in October, while business morale also dropped in all sectors barring construction.
The data "suggests the Italian economy could slow down in coming months," ISTAT said.
Earlier on Friday, it reported industrial output was stagnant in October compared with the month before, while Bank of Italy data showed that in September Italian banks' lending to firms fell by 6.7% year-on-year, the steepest drop on record.
Italian gross domestic product was flat in the third quarter compared with the previous three months, a preliminary ISTAT estimate showed last week, following a 0.4% contraction between April and June.
Giorgia Meloni's government is officially forecasting full-year GDP growth of 0.8% this year, slowing sharply compared with last year's rate of 3.7%.
The government sees growth slightly stronger at 1.2% next year, which is above the expectations of most independent forecasters.