European Inflation

Euro area annual inflation is expected to be 2.5% in October 2012, down from 2.6% in September

European Unemployment

The euro area (EA17) seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate was 11.6% in September 2012, up from 11.5% in August.
The EU27 unemployment rate was 10.6% in September 2012, stable compared with August.
In both zones, rates have risen significantly compared with September 2011, when they were 10.3% and 9.8% respectively
Eurostat estimates that 25.751 million men and women in the EU27, of whom 18.490 million were in the euro area,
were unemployed in September 2012.
Compared with August 2012, the number of persons unemployed increased by 169 000 in the EU27 and by 146 000 in the euro area.
Compared with September 2011, unemployment rose by 2.145 million in the EU27 and by 2.174 million in the euro area.

As I reported last month, not a lot happens on this one on a monthly basis

But I’ll still keep an eye on the releases because as soon as I don’t…..

British shoppers’ spend in local stores is almost on a par with the high street supermarkets
Local stores are now seeing 18p in every pound, compared to 20p for the supermarket chains
More than three quarters of consumers agree convenience store staff are friendlier than those in larger stores, while 86% agree they get outstanding speed of service
85% believe convenience store shopping is easier than visiting chain supermarkets.

47% of retailers reported that sales volumes were up on a year ago and 17% stated that sales had fallen. The resulting balance of +30% well exceeded expectations (+15%), and was the fastest rate of sales growth since June (+42%).
Looking ahead, retailers expect growth in sales volumes to be similarly robust in the year to November (+27%)
the volume of orders placed on suppliers increased moderatel
, high-street retailers still considered the volume of sales to be below average for the time of year

Over a third of employers (35%) expect their workforce to be larger in 12 months’ time than it is today, while just15% expect it to be smaller – a positive balance of +20%. This compares to a positive balance of +28% at this point last year
Among small and medium-sized businesses expectations of workforce expansion are particularly widespread, with a positive balance of +36% in the smallest firms and +27% of mid-sized businesses expecting to grow their workforce
More firms plan to expand their level of recruitment of permanent staff in the next six months than anticipate a reduction (25% compared with 16%, giving a positive balance of +9%)

Retail employment rose by 2.9% in the third quarter of 2012 compared with a year earlier, the fastest growth in two years – equivalent to 20,533 additional full-time jobs in our sampled retailers
The increase in jobs was driven by part-time workers, particularly in the grocery sector
The number of outlets and full-time jobs fell in non-food retailing