The index rose by five points compared to January 2017 and by 22 points compared with the long-term average, the Statistics Office (SURS) said on Tuesday.

The sub-index that recorded the biggest monthly jump, of 8 percentage points, was the current economic situation, with the statisticians saying that Slovenian consumer expectations about the economic situation had never been better.

The index was also fuelled by optimism about the economic situation in Slovenia (+4pp) and the financial situation of households (+2pp).

In annual comparison, the index rose mostly due consumers having more optimistic expectations about the economic situation (+7pp) as well as about the number of unemployed and savings (+6pp each).

SURS also released figures about the consumer indices it measures only on a quarterly basis.

Expectations about home renovation improved by 9 points, about housing purchase by 4 points and about car purchase by 3 points.

Home renovation in the coming 12 months is being considered by 23% of consumers, a car purchase by 10% and a purchase of housing by 4%.

According to SURS, the last time the indices for housing and car purchases were that high was in 2005 and 2006, respectively.