European jobs market defies expectations as unemployment hits record low December 1, 2022 The European jobs market is defying expectations and holding up well despite experts expecting the bloc to tip into a tough recession, fresh figures out today show. The proportion of people unemployed in the 19 countries using the euro dropped to a record low 6.5 per cent in October from 6.6 per cent in September, [...]
Eurozone inflation drops for first time since mid 2021 and may have ‘passed its peak’ November 30, 2022 Inflation in Europe fell for the first time since mid 2021 and may have passed its peak, fresh figures out today reveal. Prices across the 19 countries using the euro climbed 10 per cent over the year to November, down from a rate of 10.6 per cent in October, according to Eurostat. The drop was [...]
Euro on course to stay below US dollar parity for some time, Goldman warns November 6, 2022 The euro is on course to stay below parity with the US dollar for some time if gas prices do not fall markedly, a top Wall Street bank has said. The currency used by the 19 countries that make up the eurozone is set to drop to $0.94, according to Goldman Sachs. The euro last [...]
Eurozone inflation breaches forecasts to hit record 10.7 per cent October 31, 2022 Eurozone inflation has surged past expectations to 10.7 per cent this month in a further sign the European Central Bank (ECB) will have to keep heaping misery on businesses and households to tame prices. Prices continued to climb rapidly in all the bloc’s major economies, signalling the effects of the ECB’s pivot from years of [...]
Fed pivot hopes fade after US economy returns to strong growth October 27, 2022 The US economy has surprisingly shaken off a series of steep rate rises, indicating the Federal Reserve’s campaign to tame historic high inflation is not over yet, new figures out today reveal. Gross domestic product (GDP) across the pond climbed 2.6 per cent last quarter, swinging from a 0.6 per cent contraction in the three [...]
ECB fires second successive jumbo rate hike in push to end Europe’s cheap money addiction October 27, 2022 The European Central Bank (ECB) today fired its second jumbo rate hike in a row in another sign that it is putting years of ultra-cheap money to the sword. The central bank that oversees the financial system of the 19 countries using the euro lifted borrowing costs 75 basis points to 1.5 per cent as [...]
Backing the central bank pivot is a risky bet October 25, 2022 It is easy to criticise central banks for heaping pain on households and businesses. But, this is exactly what they are supposed to do under current economic conditions. Inflation in the UK, US and eurozone has hit 10.1 per cent, 8.2 per cent and 9.9 per cent respectively, all historic highs. The Bank of England [...]
This is a global, not a UK specific, economic slowdown October 24, 2022 Much attention has been devoted to the comings and goings at Number 10 Downing Street and the ailing economy in recent weeks, but the UK is not alone in wilting under the weight of soaring prices and interest rates. The eurozone economy, made up of the 19 countries that use the euro, is on course [...]
German business costs accelerate at quickest pace on record September 20, 2022 German business costs have soared at the fastest rate ever in a sign that more financial woe is set to be heaped on consumers. Input prices, known as the producer price index, surged 45.8 per cent last month, according to Germany’s statistics agency. The record jump was driven by a near tripling in electricity prices. [...]
European Central Bank fires record rate rise shot to tame scorching inflation September 8, 2022 The European Central Bank (ECB) today hiked interest rates by the biggest amount since its creation in 1999 as it steps up its fight against a historic inflation surge on the Continent. President Christine Lagarde and co lifted borrowing costs in the bloc of 19 countries using the euro 75 basis points. The move takes [...]