The EU’s trade dispute with China risks spreading from textiles to footwear after the EU released data Wednesday which purported to show that Chinese shoe imports had surged since the end of quotas at the start of the year.
“Responding to concerns of European shoemakers, the European Commission said imports of leather shoes and textile slippers [...]

Despite all the hard work that is being put in by EU President Jean-Claude Junker, progress on the forthcoming EU budget seems like it might be agonizingly slow. In the first place Blair is in fighting mood:
“The UK rebate will remain. We will not negotiate it away. Period,”
In london the treasury seems equally determined:
“We would [...]

Michael Deppler, Director, European Department of the International Monetary Fund, said in a conference call on the economic outlook for the eurozone, that all was not as bleak as it seemed for the German economy:
“Then, you know, coming back to Germany, no question but that the past decade has been a very difficult one for [...]

Das Ordervolumen in der Industrie hat sich von M?rz auf April vorl?ufigen Angaben zufolge[2] preis- und saisonbereinigt[3] um 2,9% verringert, nachdem es im Monat zuvor deutlich angestiegen war (+2,1%). Der Nachfrager?ckgang im April war vor allem auf die Abnahme der Auftragseing?nge aus dem Ausland zur?ckzuf?hren (-5,2%). Die Bestellt?tigkeit im Inland verringerte sich demgegen?ber weniger deutlich [...]

Retail sales rose, if only marginally, in May according to NTC Research:
at 50.2, the PMI signalled only a marginal rise in sales as, overall, underlying market demand remained sluggish and retailers were forced to rely on promotional activity to improve their sales, which again impacted negatively on profits. Subdued demand was also highlighted by a [...]

For once, small but good:
Growth in European service industries, which account for about one-third of the euro-region economy, unexpectedly accelerated in May to the fastest pace in seven months.
An index based on a survey of about 2,000 purchasing managers of companies including airlines and banks compiled by NTC Research Ltd. for Reuters Group Plc rose [...]

The UK housing market is gradually grinding to a standstill, in price terms that is. The latest report from Nationwide indicates that:
“Average property prices as measured by the mortgage lender increased marginally by 0.3 per cent between April and May. This pushed the annual inflation rate to 5.5 per cent, a level not seen since [...]

And significantly. It will be worth looking at the US data this afternoon, but the trend is clear, off-shoring is, if anything, picking up speed.
Manufacturing in the dozen euro nations in May shrank the most in almost two years as unemployment near a five-year high and oil prices around $50 a barrel add to concerns [...]

This is not surprising, but it is hard to see how the German economy is going to generate GDP and employment growth in 2005. Remember global trade is slowing gradually, so it is hard to see who you can rely on exports.
Retail sales in Germany, Europe’s largest economy, fell in April as unemployment held near [...]

Just another item to add to the list of bad news:
European business confidence dropped to a 21-month low in May and consumers were the most pessimistic in a year as oil prices around $50 a barrel and unemployment near a five-year high dimmed the outlook for economic growth.
An index gauging confidence among 35,000 executives in [...]