020 7898 0500The single-currency bloc’s week began with the German trade balance (which was broadly positive), but the EU’s most powerful economy also saw industrial production fall. Unemployment for the Eurozone also came out as expected at 9.8%. Tuesday saw only French industrial production, which beat expectations. On Wednesday Germany issued 10 year bonds, and this saw yields rise slightly, hinting at investors upping – slightly – their expectations for inflation in the country.
Yesterday saw an increase in activity, with French consumer price data , German annual Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and the Eurozone’s industrial production all being better than expected. The European Central Bank (ECB) also released the closely watched account of their last monetary policy committee meeting. Today sees the week finish on a quieter note, with low-level economic figures coming from Germany, Finland and Spain. Despite the lack of headline-grabbing data releases, the euro has strengthened over the week against both the dollar and the pound.
