Cooling prices, falling imports highlight euro zone's malaise

[dipsydoodle]

Source: Reuters

(Reuters) - Falling prices in Germany and France pulled euro zone consumer inflation to a three-year low in April while imports fell 10 percent in March, as new data showed the depth of the bloc's downturn.

The sharp drop in annual consumer inflation to 1.2 percent, confirmed by the EU's statistics office Eurostat on Thursday, highlights the risk of deflation in the euro zone, which slipped into its longest ever recession at the start of this year.

Prices in Belgium, Germany, Greece and France fell in April from March, and Greece remained in deflationary territory for a second month, along with non-euro country Latvia which is due to become the bloc's 18th member next year.

Falling world oil prices are behind the drop in inflationary pressures, and the European Central Bank cut interest rates to a record 0.5 percent low this month, aware that inflation risks falling further below their target of just under 2 percent.

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/05/16/uk-eurozone-economy-idUKBRE94F0CC20130516

Read more: http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/05/16/uk-eurozone-economy-idUKBRE94F0CC20130516

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Newly published data - hence LBN.

[Gman]

1. Austerity does not work

People have no money, there's no demand, prices fall.

[Vincardog]

2. This is where Austerity leads. But make no mistake this is exactly the result the monied Elites

Desire. We go bankrupt.
They buy our public assets for pennies on the dollar.
They rent them back to us at full price.
Look for this to happen in our schools, prisons, water and sewers.
If they could they wold patent breathing and make us pay for the privilege.