According to the recent Eurostat report the Euro Area inflation rate slightly slipped by 0.2 percent points to reach an annual inflation rate of 3% in December 2011.
This decline comes despite the recent cuts in the ECB’s interest rates. The Euro is currently traded down. The Employment in the EU is also down by 0.1% during the third quarter of 2011.
Euro Area Inflation
According to the flash report that was published today, the Euro Area inflation rate is estimated at 2.8% in December 2011 (annual terms). The rate declined from an annual rate of 3% in November 2011.
The chart below shows the development of the Euro Area inflation rate and ECB basic interest rate in 2010-2011. The Euro Area inflation rate is still higher than the ECB target rate of 2%, but the ECB will consider lowering again ECB interest rates in the next ECB meeting especially as there are European debt crisis continues.
Euro Area Employment
The Eurostat also published the employment figures in the EU and it estimated that nearly 222.9 million people in the EU27 were employed in the third quarter of 2011; out of which 146.9 million people were employed in the Euro Area alone. This is a decrease of 0.1% (Q-2-Q) in the third quarter of 2011, compared with the second quarter of 2011.
This news items might be among the factors for the current decline in the Euro/USD after this currency had increased on January 3rd, 2012.
Euros to USD is currently traded down at 1.2945 a 0.8048% decrease as of 17:51*.
Current Nymex crude oil price, short term futures (February 2012 delivery) is traded up by 0.04%, at $103.00 per barrel as of 17:46*.
Current gold price, short term futures (February 2012 delivery) is traded at $1,614.40 per t oz. a $13.9 increase or 0.87%, as of 17:42*.
(* GMT)
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