Euro Area Retail Sales Improve, German Services Output Stagnates

Arthi Gupta
04 Jul, 2012
New York City

Retail sales in the euro-zone increased unexpectedly in May. The euro area service sector data signaled a reduction in activity in June with many of the regions reporting contraction. Italian deficit to gross domestic product increased in the first quarter.

[R]1:30 PM Frankfurt – Retail sales in the euro-zone increased unexpectedly in May. The euro area service sector data signaled a reduction in activity in June with many of the regions reporting contraction. Italian deficit to gross domestic product increased in the first quarter.[/R]

Euro-zone Retail Sales Improve

Retail sales in the euro-zone increased unexpectedly in May, the latest data from Eurostat showed today.

Retail sales rose 0.6% from a month ago in May, following a 1.4% fall in sales in April.

On an annual basis, retail sales fell 1.7% in May compared to the 3.4% drop in April.

Euro-zone Service Sector Rises

Euro-zone PMI rises in June but still signals steep rate of contraction, data from a survey by Markit Economics showed.

The purchasing managers'' index for the service sector increased to 47.1 in June, up from 46.8 recorded in the preliminary estimates and also higher than the reading of 46.7 in May.

German Service Sector Stagnates

German service sector output stagnated in June, results of a survey by Markit Economics showed today.

The final seasonally adjusted Markit Germany Composite Output Index, which measures the combined output of the manufacturing and service sectors dropped to 48.1 in June from 49.3 during May.

The latest reading was lower than the earlier ‘flash’ estimate of 48.5 in June and signaled a moderate reduction in private sector output but the decline was the steepest in three years.

Adjusted for seasonal factors, the Markit Germany Services Business Activity Index dropped to 49.9 in June from 51.8 in May. The latest reading was below the earlier flash reading of 50.3.

French Service Sector Up

Business activity in the French service sector continued to contract in June, albeit at a weaker rate, final data from Markit Economics showed.

The services Purchasing Managers'' Index recorded 47.9 in June, up from 45.1 in May.

Spanish Service Sector Rises

The Spain service sector data signaled a reduction in activity in June, data from Markit Economics showed today.

The headline seasonally adjusted Purchasing Managers'' Index rose to 43.4 in June from 41.8 in May. Activity has now fallen on a monthly basis throughout the past year.

The Spanish economic crisis continued to impact negatively on the sector in June as new business remained difficult to secure. New orders decreased for the twelfth successive month.

Italian Service Sector Contracts, Deficit to GDP Widens

Activity in the Italian service sector decreased in June, data from a survey by Markit Economics and the Italian Association of Purchasing Management showed today.

The seasonally adjusted Markit/ADACI Business Activity Index was at 43.1 in June, up from the reading of 42.8 in May. The rate of decline was the weakest in three months.

Separately, Italy''s deficit to gross domestic product increased to 8% in the first quarter, the statistics office Istat reported today. During the same period of last year, the deficit was at 7% of GDP.

The current deficit totaled €21.95 billion compared to a €17.12 billion shortfall in the same period of prior year.