(BRUSSELS) - Confidence in the economy of the 15 countries sharing the euro fell in August to the lowest level in over five years, although consumers' outlook improved slightly, according to an EU survey on Friday.

Following in the path of other recent weak data, the European Commission's eurozone economic sentiment indicator eased in to 88.8 points from 89.5 points in July.

Although the fall brought the overall index to its lowest point since March 2003, there was a brief ray of light on consumer confidence, which improved in August for the first time in over a year.

Meanwhile, overall confidence in the economy of the broader 27-nation European Union also retreated August, falling to 86.9 points from 88.8 in July, the survey showed.

The European Commission's separate monthly business climate indicator for the eurozone also declined, dropping to a negative 0.33 points in August from a negative 0.20 in July.

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