Spanish Jobless Rate Above 25%, German Confidence Set to Rise

Arthi Gupta
26 Oct, 2012
New York City

The European indexes declined. The euro area leading economic index fell in September and German consumer confidence estimated to rise in November. Spanish jobless rate rose in the third quarter. Italy raised

[R]1:30 PM Frankfurt – The European indexes declined. The euro area leading economic index fell in September and German consumer confidence estimated to rise in November. Spanish jobless rate rose in the third quarter. Italy raised €4 billion in an auction today.[/R]

European market indexes extended losses in the week as sentiment turned cautious on the growing evidence of slowing world economy and mixed corporate earnings.

Italy raised €4 billion in an auction of inflation- linked and zero-coupon debt today.

Spanish jobless rate rose above 25% as the nation struggles with shrinking economy, falling bank lending and smaller government spending.

In Paris trading, the CAC-40 Index declined 14.04 or 0.4% to 3,397.49 and in Frankfurt the DAX Index edged lower 25.51 or 0.3% to 7,174.72.

For the week, the CAC-40 Index slumped 3.1% and the DAX Index dropped 2.8%.

The yields on Spain’s benchmark 10-year rose five basis points to 5.67%. Italian 10-year yields climbed five basis points to 4.91%.

Italian Bond Auction

Italy raised €4 billion from an auction of inflation- linked and zero-coupon debt today.

Italy sold €3 billion of zero-coupon debt maturing in September 2014 at an average yield of 2.397% compared with an average yield of 2.532% at the previous auction on September 25.

The country also sold €1 billion of inflation-linked debt due in September 2021 and September 2026.

Euro Zone Leading Index Drops

The leading economic index for the euro area decreased 0.4% on a monthly basis to 104.9 in September, according to a report released by the Conference Board today.

The coincident economic index, which measures current economic activity, remained unchanged at 102.3 in September.

German Confidence Set to Rise

German consumer confidence improved slightly in October, according to a survey published by GfK today.

The overall indicator forecasts 6.3 points for November, after the revised 6.1 points in October.

The economic expectations of consumers also improved modestly. The indicator has risen 1.4 points to -15.8 points in October.

Separately, Germany''s import price index increased 1.8% on an annual basis in September, from the 3.2% rise in August, data released by the Federal Statistics Office showed.

Energy prices advanced 5.7% annually in September.

On a monthly basis, import prices fell 0.7% in September, after rising 1.3% in August.

French Sentiment Falls

French consumer sentiment declined in October, data released by statistics office Insee showed.

The consumer confidence index dropped to 84 in October from 85 in September.

The indicator of confidence in the general economic situation over the last year was at -73 in October compared to -77 in September. However, the future economic situation dropped to -59 in October from -56 in September, data showed.

Spanish Jobless Rate Climbs

The jobless rate in Spain rose to 25.02% in the third quarter from 24.63% in the second quarter, data published by statistics office Ine showed.

The number of unemployed persons increased 1.49% on a quarterly basis to 5.78 million. This was 16.06% higher than a year earlier.

The jobless rate among young workers aged 16 to 24 declined to 52.34% in the third quarter, from 53.27% in the second quarter.