A Tale of Two Continents, Two Worlds
From this morning's Wall Street Journal Online:
Item One: U.S. GDP grew at a rate of 3.5% in the first quarter, better than first thought, in a new sign of a strong springtime business expansion.
Item Two: There are many reasons why some in France are souring on the [European Union] bloc -- not all of them directly related to the document itself. Opponents have argued that the constitution is too complicated and needs to be revised. They also have warned that if it takes effect, France will lose jobs to countries with lower wages, such as Hungary and Poland. That's a sensitive subject in France, where unemployment has reached a five-year high of 10.2% and more than one in five people under the age of 25 are unemployed.
Item Three: Germany's Ifo index for May, released yesterday, fell to its lowest level since August 2003. It declined for the fourth straight month to 92.9 from 93.3 in April, and came in well below economists' forecasts for a May reading of 93.5. "An improvement in the economic situation in the next months is not to be expected," said Hans-Werner Sinn, president of the Munich-based institute, calling for the euro area's central bank to consider a rate cut.
Item Four: Meanwhile, Italian business confidence fell to its lowest level in 3½ years, data from Italian think tank ISAE showed. The ISEA survey "suggests that the manufacturing sector is some way off from exiting its current recession," said Phyllis Papadavid, an economist at Lehman Brothers.
Item One: U.S. GDP grew at a rate of 3.5% in the first quarter, better than first thought, in a new sign of a strong springtime business expansion.
Item Two: There are many reasons why some in France are souring on the [European Union] bloc -- not all of them directly related to the document itself. Opponents have argued that the constitution is too complicated and needs to be revised. They also have warned that if it takes effect, France will lose jobs to countries with lower wages, such as Hungary and Poland. That's a sensitive subject in France, where unemployment has reached a five-year high of 10.2% and more than one in five people under the age of 25 are unemployed.
Item Three: Germany's Ifo index for May, released yesterday, fell to its lowest level since August 2003. It declined for the fourth straight month to 92.9 from 93.3 in April, and came in well below economists' forecasts for a May reading of 93.5. "An improvement in the economic situation in the next months is not to be expected," said Hans-Werner Sinn, president of the Munich-based institute, calling for the euro area's central bank to consider a rate cut.
Item Four: Meanwhile, Italian business confidence fell to its lowest level in 3½ years, data from Italian think tank ISAE showed. The ISEA survey "suggests that the manufacturing sector is some way off from exiting its current recession," said Phyllis Papadavid, an economist at Lehman Brothers.
