With most of the attention on the session being focused on US announcements surrounding subprime concerns, Eurozone economic data fell to the wayside. Granted, there wasn?t much to go on. However, what was reported gave a little more hope as to further expansion in the economic region.
For one, unemployment remained relatively still, keeping in time with the previous figure of 6.9 percent. Economic confidence and business climate were also positive for Euro growth and underlying currency appreciation. For the month of August, business assessments were higher at a 1.41 print compared to the previous 1.35. The figure complimented the economic confidence report, which showed stabilization in the region. However, one report did lend some bearish undertones, which would have minimized any gains purported by the previous two indications in normal market conditions. According to statistics agency, German retail sales figures were far less than expected. Rising by only 0.3 percent in the monthly comparison, the figure actually fell further by 1.5 percent on the year. This means that although economic conditions may be improving, the overall propensity for people to spend just isn?t there. Although perceived as somewhat trivial now, it should be interesting to see if this could be the start of something slower for the region in the near term.
Written by Richard Lee, Currency Strategist of DailyFX.com