Euro Area Jobless Rate Flat at 9.9%; Manufacturing Weakens

Arthi Gupta
01 Aug, 2011
New York City

European manufacturing activity fell in July. Euro area jobless rate remained flat at 9.9% and Italy jobless rate dipped in June to 8% and Danish retail sales fell.

[R]2:00 PM Frankfurt – European manufacturing activity fell in July. Euro area jobless rate remained flat at 9.9% and Italy jobless rate dipped in June to 8% and Danish retail sales fell.[/R]

Euro-zone Manufacturing Activity Slumps

Euro-zone manufacturing activity declined in July, Markit Economics said. The final Purchasing Managers'' Index fell to 50.4 in July from 52 in June.

German Factory Sector Growth Slows

Germany''s manufacturing industry expansion slowed in July, according to final data from a survey conducted by Markit Economics and the German Association for Materials Management.

The seasonally adjusted Markit/BME purchasing managers'' index dropped to 52 in July from 54.6 in June. The latest reading was lower than the flash estimate of 52.1, and was the lowest since October 2009.

French Manufacturing PMI Decreases

The seasonally adjusted Purchasing Managers'' Index for the French manufacturing sector dropped to 50.5 in July from 52.5 in June, driven by a reduction in new orders, according to final data from Markit Economics released today. The flash estimate for July was 50.1.

Greek Manufacturing Activity Slides

Greek manufacturing sector activity weakened in July, survey results from Markit Economics showed on Monday.

The headline purchasing managers'' index fell to 45.2 in July from 45.5 in June. New business received by Greek manufacturers fell in July.

Sweden Manufacturing Drops

Sweden''s industrial output stagnated in July, according to survey data released by Swedbank and the Swedish National Association of Purchasing and Logistics today.

The Purchasing Managers'' Index for the manufacturing sector fell to 50.1 in July compared to 52.9 in June.

Production and new orders were the largest negative contributors to the decline in July.

Hungarian Manufacturing Slackens

Hungary''s manufacturing activity expanded slowly in July, the Hungarian Association of Logistics, Purchasing and Inventory Management said on Monday.

The Purchasing Managers'' Index dropped to 52.2 in July from 54.4 in June.

Spanish Factory Sector Declines

Spain''s seasonally adjusted purchasing managers'' index for the manufacturing sector declined to 45.6 in July from 47.3 in June, data from a survey conducted by Markit Economics showed on Monday. The rate of decline was the fastest since January 2010.

Czech Manufacturing Slows

Czech manufacturing growth slowed for the third month in a row in July, to the lowest since January 2010, according to data from Markit Economics published today.

The headline HSBC/Markit Purchasing Managers'' Index declined to 53.4 in July from 55.1 in June.

Denmark Retail Sales Fall

Denmark''s retail sales fell a seasonally and inflation adjusted 0.2% on a monthly basis in June following the upwardly revised 1.1% decline in May, data released by Statistics Denmark showed on Monday. Sales in the food and other groceries group declined 0.2% in June.

From a year ago, retail sales fell inflation adjusted 2.2% in June, after a 2.5% drop in May.

Euro-zone Jobless Rate Static

The euro area unemployment rate remained unchanged at 9.9% in June, data from Eurostat showed today. The jobless rate was 10.2% a year ago.

Eurostat estimates that 15.64 million were unemployed in the euro area in June. Compared with May, the number of persons unemployed increased by 18,000.

In the EU27, the jobless rate was 9.4% in June, unchanged compared with May.

Italy Jobless Rate Dips

Italy''s unemployment rate decreased slightly in June, according to data released by the statistics office Istat.

The jobless rate fell to 8% in June from 8.1% in May. In June 2010, the unemployment rate was 8.3%. Unemployment among youth, aged between 15 and 24, was 27.8%.