The Dutch version of Internet search engine Google launched new software on June 30, which it claims can assess the state of the local economy. The economic barometer, as the feature is called, checks the number of times people using Google are searching for vacation deals, mortgages, loans, cars, jobs and or online shops.
The numbers are combined with other data from Insights for Search, Google's database about people's search behaviour. Dutch Google director Pim van der Feltz said his Amsterdam-based subsidiary of the US company does not want to compete with the Dutch Central Bureau of Statistics, which traditionally releases monthly statistics about consumer confidence. But he said the new service provided a "realistic impression" of the state of the Dutch economy.
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