European inflation

European inflation – June 2012: Eurostat

• Euro area annual inflation is expected to be 2.4% in June 2012. It was also 2.4% in May.

Road lengths

Road lengths statistics in Great Britain: 2011 – Department for Transport

Yeah, I know this isn’t my usual kind of thing, but I’m glad that someone is counting all these roads. And I’ve just bought a new motorbike.

• The total road length in Great Britain in 2011 was estimated to be 245.0 thousand miles, an increase of 2.1 thousand miles (0.9 per cent) over 10 years.
• Minor roads made up 87 per cent of total road length, with motorways and ‘A’ roads accounting for 1 per cent and 12 per cent respectively.
• Despite accounting for only 13 per cent of road length in 2011, major roads (motorways and ‘A’ roads) accounted for 65 per cent of road traffic.

Balance of Payments

Balance of Payments 2012 Q1: ONS

• The UK’s current account deficit was £11.2 billion in the first quarter of 2012, up from a revised deficit of £7.2 billion in the previous quarter.
• The trade deficit widened to £7.8 billion in the first quarter of 2012, up from £5.6 billion the previous quarter.

GDP

National Accounts 2012 Q1: ONS

• UK gross domestic product (GDP) in volume terms decreased by 0.3 per cent, unrevised from the previously estimated 0.3 per cent decline

Consumer Trends

Consumer Trends Q1 2012: ONS

• The volume of expenditure on goods and services (seasonally adjusted) fell by 0.1 per cent in Q1 2012, following growth of 0.5 per cent in Q4 2011.
• In current prices, seasonally adjusted household expenditure increased by 0.5 per cent.