Dutch producer confidence collapsed in September, reports the national statistics office CBS on Thursday.

The fall from 4.9 to -0.5 on the index is the steepest since the CBS began monitoring confidence levels in 1985, says the Financieele Dagblad.
Economist Michiel Vergeer told the paper that it is clear that the international financial crisis has now reached Dutch industry. According to Vergeer, producers expect the decrease to hit consumer goods such as food and drinks in particular.
Falling producer confidence is the result of a decrease in demand on both the home and export markets. Vergeer expects Dutch production to fall in the fourth quarter of 2008.
Meanwhile consumer confidence grew by five points in September and the Dutch economy increased by 3% in the second quarter of 2008, a rise of 0.2%, says the CBS.