Inflation has returned to the eurozone, with a rise registered in April that lifts the figures out of negative territory, but overall the rate remains stable at 0%.
In general consumer spending throughout the eurozone has remained strong despite often severe unemployment
which shows little signs of contracting despite the return to growth.
The flash estimate provides no country-by-country data but the trend is clear: Since last November price pressure has been on the build.
The ECB’s liquidity policy appears to have helped encourage banks to resume lending, and it has driven down the euro making exports more competitive.
But the major worry remains unemployment, which on a political level is starting to pose a problem for some of Europe’s traditional parties as dynamic young groups rail against their seeming inability to challenge vested interests and create jobs.
German unemployment, however, has fallen to a two-decade low
although generous wage deals for those in work are
