Euro-zone Production Eases 0.1%; German WPI Declines

Arthi Gupta
13 Jul, 2011
New York City

Euro area industrial output eased in May. German wholesale price inflation declined but Spanish inflation eased in June. Norwegian home prices rose in the second quarter. Finnish retail sales increased in May.

[R]1:00 PM Frankfurt – Euro area industrial output eased in May. German wholesale price inflation declined but Spanish inflation eased in June. Norwegian home prices rose in the second quarter. Finnish retail sales increased in May.[/R]

Euro-zone Industrial Production Eases

Euro-zone production expanded at a sluggish pace in the month as it has been in the year. Germany and France lead the growth but peripheral nations continue to struggle to add industrial production.

Euro-zone industrial production growth eased to 0.1% in May from the 0.2% rise in April, according to data published from Eurostat today.

On a yearly basis, industrial production advanced 4% in May after rising 5.3% in April.

Production of capital goods soared 9.3% and intermediate goods increased 4.4% annually in May. Non-durable consumer goods gained 2.1% and durable consumer goods 1.2%.

German Wholesale Price Inflation Declines

German wholesale price inflation slowed to 8.5% annually in June from 8.9% in May, according to data released by the Federal Statistics Office today.

Wholesale prices fell 0.6% on a monthly basis in June after staying flat in May.

Spanish Inflation Eases

Consumer price inflation in Spain eased to 3.2% in June, in line with flash estimate, from 3.5% in May, final data from the statistics office INE showed on Wednesday.

On a monthly basis, the consumer price index edged lower 0.1% in June.

Norwegian Home Prices Up

Norway''s home prices index increased 2.8% on a quarterly basis in the second quarter, according to data released by Statistics Norway today.

Prices for flats in blocks climbed 2% and prices of row houses rose 1.7% during the quarter.

Finnish Retail Sales Increase

Finland''s retail sales, excluding automobiles, increased 8.2% from a year ago in May compared to the 7.2% rise in April, data released by Statistics Finland showed on Wednesday. The latest gain was the largest since May 2008, when sales rose 9.9%.

In volume terms, retail sales 5.3% annually in May.