13th Monthly Decline in Spanish Retail Sales; Italian Sentiment Weakens

Arthi Gupta
29 Aug, 2011
New York City

Spanish mortgage approvals dropped in June. Swedish retail sales eased in July. Greek producer price index increased in July. Italian consumer confidence weakened in August. Norwegian factory wages climbed in the second quarter.

[R]2:45 PM Frankfurt – Spanish mortgage approvals dropped in June. Swedish retail sales eased in July. Greek producer price index increased in July. Italian consumer confidence weakened in August. Norwegian factory wages climbed in the second quarter.[/R]

Spanish Mortgage Approvals, Retail Sales Drop

The number of houses mortgaged in June declined 42.4% from the previous year, the statistics office INE said on Monday. On a monthly basis, average mortgages decreased 13.1%.

Separately, Spanish retail sales declined for the thirteenth consecutive month in July, the statistics office INE said in a report on Monday.

Retail sales slipped a calendar-adjusted 3.9% in July from the previous year following a revised 7.2% fall in June.

Food product sales declined 5.3% and non-food sales fell 5.9% in July.

Swedish Retail Sales Eases

Sweden''s retail sales increased a working-day adjusted 1.1% on an annual basis in July, after increasing 3.2% in June, revised down from 3.4%.

On a monthly basis, retail sales decreased a seasonally adjusted 0.7% in July, reversing the 2.8% increase in June, revised down from 3.1%.

Hungary May-July Unemployment Steady

The jobless rate remained unchanged at 10.8% in the three months ended July, according to data released by the Central Statistics Office on Monday. The number of unemployed persons edged higher to 463,200 from 460,700 in the previous three-month period.

Italian Confidence Weakens

Italian consumer sentiment indicator fell to 100.3 in August from 103.7 in July, survey data from the statistics office Istat showed on Monday.

The assessment of overall economic situation dropped to 70 in August from 74.9 in July.

Greek PPI Accelerates

Greece''s producer price index increased 9.1% on an annual basis in July compared to the 6.6% growth recorded in June, data released by the Hellenic Statistics Authority showed.

Prices of intermediate goods rose 5.9% and capital goods prices edged higher 0.1% in July.

On a monthly basis, producer prices gained 1.1% in July, following the 0.2% rise in June.

Norwegian Factory Wages Up

Earnings of employees in the Norwegian manufacturing sector increased in the second quarter, preliminary data released by Statistics Norway showed on Monday.

The wage index, which measures the average monthly earnings and basic salaries for full-time employees in manufacturing, rose 1.2% sequentially in the second quarter.

UK Home Prices Drop

Home prices in the UK declined for a fourth consecutive month in August, property data firm Hometrack said on Monday.

Home prices fell 0.1% in August, and was 3.7% below the August 2010 level, Hometrack said.

Irish Retail Sales Slip, Home Prices Drop

Irish retail sales volume declined 0.6% from a year ago in July compared to the 0.1% drop in June, the Central Statistics Office said on Monday.

In value terms, retail sales decreased 0.5% annually in July, following a 0.2% rise in June.

Separately, Ireland''s residential property prices dropped 12.5% from a year ago in July versus the 12.9% decline in June, according to the Central Statistics Office report released on Monday. The home price index has been falling since February 2008.

In Dublin, residential property prices in July remained the same as in June and were 11.9% lower than a year ago.

In another report, Ireland''s mortgage arrears and repossessions increased for the period ended June, the Central Bank of Ireland said on Monday.

The report showed about 7.2% of private residential mortgage accounts were in arrears for more than 90 days compared to the 6.3% rate in March. There were 777,321 private residential mortgage accounts held in Ireland to a value of €115 billion.