Dismal Eurozone data adds to reasons not to hike interest rates September 3, 2014 Our panel of experts voted to hold interest rates again this week, with dismal data from the Eurozone adding to weak UK wage inflation as the major reasons mentioned not to tighten policy. The clear slowdown in the currency union has had little effect on hard economic data in the UK so far, but several [...]
German bank boss’ support for central Eurozone bond sparks ire September 3, 2014 The chairman and chief executive of one of Germany’s largest banks was in hot water in his home country yesterday, after penning an article in support of centralised bond issuances for the Eurozone. Commerzbank boss Martin Blessing came under scrutiny after expressing the opinion in an article for German business newspaper Handelsblatt. Blessing said that the [...]
Eurozone PMI in graphs: Spain and Ireland report strong services growth, while France and Italy lag behind September 3, 2014 More economic problems for France and Italy. Both countries slipped in to contractionary territory in the Markit PMI stakes, recording composite (manufacturing and services) scores below the 50 point that indicates growth. The Eurozone overall posted at 52.5, revised down from 52.8. BNP Paribas has suggested that the downward revision points to mid-month events affecting [...]
Falling output in France and Italy dampens Eurozone growth September 3, 2014 Falling output in France and Italy has seen the Eurozone manufacturing and services recovery slow to the weakest level so far this year, figures out this morning show. Overall the index was 52.5 in the month, down from 53.8 in July – the weakest of the year so far, although any PMI score above [...]
The Eurozone has entered the red zone – CNBC Comment September 1, 2014 The Eurozone's August inflation figure was confirmed at 0.3 per cent last week, down from July’s surprisingly weak reading of 0.4 per cent. It was also, of course, way below the European Central Bank’s (ECB) inflation target of just under 2 per cent, and well within the ECB’s stated “danger zone” of under 1 per cent. [...]
Dreary Eurozone outlook raises pressure on Draghi August 31, 2014 The policymakers of the European Central Bank (ECB) will meet again this week, faced with an increasingly dismal economic outlook and a growing chorus of disapproval. Grim figures released on Friday confirmed that consumer price inflation in the euro area dropped to just 0.3 per cent in August, the lowest level in nearly five years. [...]
Eurozone inflation falls to five-year low as unemployment stays flat at 11.5 per cent August 29, 2014 Consumer price inflation in the eurozone dropped to 0.3 per cent in August, its lowest level since October 2009, as unemployment remained stubbornly flat at 11.5 per cent, official figures published this morning showed. Although the figures were underwhelming, they met analyst expectations. The drop in inflation was largely driven by energy prices, which fell [...]
Misery growing for Eurozone as growth falters and consumer confidence wavers August 21, 2014 The Eurozone’s major economies are facing another slowdown, with confidence and output sliding even further after the bloc’s growth ground to a halt in the second quarter of the year. Grim figures yesterday from data firm Markit showed both services and manufacturing firms in Europe reporting a slower expansion this month. The purchasing managers’ index [...]
Divergence looms for Eurozone and US in Jackson Hole speeches August 21, 2014 WORLD-famous economists arrived at Jackson Hole yesterday, as the Kansas City Federal Reserve’s annual conference on monetary policy begins. Speeches today will come from Fed chair Janet Yellen and European Central Bank (ECB) boss Mario Draghi, the world’s two most important monetary policymakers. Analysts suspect that the speeches will display an emerging division between the [...]
As Nobel laureates slam Eurozone policy, will historians “tar and feather” its central bank? August 21, 2014 Jennifer McKeown, senior European economist at Capital Economics, says Yes. With the Eurozone’s feeble recovery grinding to a halt, and inflation dangerously close to zero, there is a clear case for the European Central Bank (ECB) to do all it can to stimulate the economy. Policies announced in June to offer more liquidity to banks [...]