Euro area September manufacturing output expands
Encouraging indicators have begun to accumulate since the Euro area returned to growth in the second quarter, ending a record-long recession
 "Euro area September manufacturing output expands")
Euro-area factory output expanded for a third month in September as the 17-nation currency bloc's economic recovery gained momentum.
An index based on a survey of purchasing managers in the manufacturing industry slipped to 51.1 from 51.4 in August, in line with an estimate published on September 23, London-based Markit Economics said today. A reading above 50 indicates growth.
Encouraging indicators have begun to accumulate since the Euro area returned to growth in the second quarter, ending a record-long recession. Investor confidence in Germany, Europe's largest economy, climbed to the highest level in more than three years in September.
As evidence of investors' optimism, the Stoxx Europe 600 Index has risen about 8 per cent since the end of June and the euro has gained almost 4 per cent against the dollar.
Even so, Europe continues to struggle with the legacy of a debt crisis now in its fourth year, with the European Central Bank predicting the bloc's economy will contract 0.4 percent this year, followed by growth of just 1 per cent in 2014.
To help keep market borrowing costs down, the ECB has pledged to keep interest rates low for an extended period after it cut its benchmark rate to a record low of 0.5 per cent in May.
Unemployment is at a record rate of 12.1 per cent, and analysts predict the jobless rate will remain higher than 12 per cent through 2015, according to a Bloomberg Survey.
Jobless rate unexpectedly falls amid recovery
Euro area unemployment unexpectedly retreated from a record, as the currency bloc's economic recovery gained momentum.
The jobless rate fell to a revised 12 per cent in July from a record 12.1 per cent a month earlier, and held at that level in August, the European Union's statistics office in Luxembourg said today. Economists forecast the rate to remain at 12.1 percent, according to the median of 30 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey. Unemployment among young people fell to 23.7 per cent in August after two months at 23.8 per cent. bloomberg
Tuesday's report comes after the 17-nation Euro economy emerged from its longest-ever recession in the second quarter and economic confidence rose for a fifth month in September. At the same time, economists surveyed by Bloomberg predict the jobless rate will peak at 12.3 per cent by the end of this year before falling to 12 per cent by 2015.
"There are some signs of stabilisation in Europe's periphery, for example in Spain," said Janet Henry, chief European economist at HSBC in London. "But it will be a long time until we see the euro area's unemployment rate coming down to anywhere near pre-crisis levels." bloomberg
Unemployment in Germany, Europe's largest economy, held at 5.2 percent in August, today's report showed. The jobless rates in France and Spain remained at 11 percent and 26.2 percent, respectively, while in Italy the rate increased to 12.2 percent.
The Pentagon and other US government agencies began to implement shutdown plans on Tuesday after Congress failed to reach a deal to fund the federal government in the new fiscal year beginning October 1.
A last-minute measure passed by Congress and signed by President Barack Obama will ensure the Pentagon's 1.4 million military employees worldwide will continue to receive paychecks during the shutdown. They were required to work under prior law but would not have been paid until Congress approved funding.
The new law also ensures that civilians who are required to work despite the shutdown will also be paid, Hagel said. But under law, anyone not directly involved in protecting lives and property are not considered exempt and must be placed on leave.
"Our lawyers are now looking through the (new) law that the president signed ... to see if there's any margin here or widening in the interpretation of the law regarding exempt versus non-exempt civilians," Hagel said. "Our lawyers believe that maybe we can expand the exempt status."
Hagel said he didn't know how many people the department might be able to call back from leave, or how long it would take to reach a determination, but he said it was "the priority" in the Pentagon's general counsel's office.
The shutdown has direct implications for the staff with Hagel on his week-long trip to South Korea and Japan. They are considered exempt while supporting the secretary's mission abroad, but that status may change for some when they return home on Friday, Pentagon spokesman George Little said.
The U.S. defense chief said he broke away from celebrations in South Korea on Monday to discuss the shutdown by phone with Deputy Defense Secretary Ashton Carter and Pentagon Comptroller Robert Hale. He said they would hold another round of talks on Tuesday as the shutdown went into force.
"We'll probably have to furlough about 400,000 DoD (Defense Department) civilians when they come to work here in a couple of hours," Hagel said. "Those that have been designated non-exempt will be told and will be asked to go home."
The Pentagon chief said since arriving in Seoul on Sunday night, he had been questioned by South Korean officials about the threatened shutdown and why it seemed likely to take place.
"It does have an effect on our relationships around the world and it cuts straight to the obvious question: Can you rely on the United States as a reliable partner to fulfill its commitments to its allies?" Hagel told reporters.
"Here this great republic and democracy, the United States of America, shuts down its government," he added. "The Pentagon, even though we are (partly) exempted, the military has no budget. We are still living under this dark cloud of uncertainty not knowing what's going to happen.
"It does cast a very significant pall over America's credibility with our allies when this kind of thing happens. It's nonsensical ... It's completely irresponsible," Hagel said.
He urged Congress to "find a new center of gravity of responsibility and start to govern as is their responsibility."
An index based on a survey of purchasing managers in the manufacturing industry slipped to 51.1 from 51.4 in August, in line with an estimate published on September 23, London-based Markit Economics said today. A reading above 50 indicates growth.
Encouraging indicators have begun to accumulate since the Euro area returned to growth in the second quarter, ending a record-long recession. Investor confidence in Germany, Europe's largest economy, climbed to the highest level in more than three years in September.
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Financial markets' concerns about the integrity of the Euro area have diminished sharply, European Union Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn said on September 25.
As evidence of investors' optimism, the Stoxx Europe 600 Index has risen about 8 per cent since the end of June and the euro has gained almost 4 per cent against the dollar.
Even so, Europe continues to struggle with the legacy of a debt crisis now in its fourth year, with the European Central Bank predicting the bloc's economy will contract 0.4 percent this year, followed by growth of just 1 per cent in 2014.
To help keep market borrowing costs down, the ECB has pledged to keep interest rates low for an extended period after it cut its benchmark rate to a record low of 0.5 per cent in May.
Unemployment is at a record rate of 12.1 per cent, and analysts predict the jobless rate will remain higher than 12 per cent through 2015, according to a Bloomberg Survey.
Jobless rate unexpectedly falls amid recovery
Euro area unemployment unexpectedly retreated from a record, as the currency bloc's economic recovery gained momentum.
The jobless rate fell to a revised 12 per cent in July from a record 12.1 per cent a month earlier, and held at that level in August, the European Union's statistics office in Luxembourg said today. Economists forecast the rate to remain at 12.1 percent, according to the median of 30 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey. Unemployment among young people fell to 23.7 per cent in August after two months at 23.8 per cent. bloomberg
Tuesday's report comes after the 17-nation Euro economy emerged from its longest-ever recession in the second quarter and economic confidence rose for a fifth month in September. At the same time, economists surveyed by Bloomberg predict the jobless rate will peak at 12.3 per cent by the end of this year before falling to 12 per cent by 2015.
"There are some signs of stabilisation in Europe's periphery, for example in Spain," said Janet Henry, chief European economist at HSBC in London. "But it will be a long time until we see the euro area's unemployment rate coming down to anywhere near pre-crisis levels." bloomberg
Unemployment in Germany, Europe's largest economy, held at 5.2 percent in August, today's report showed. The jobless rates in France and Spain remained at 11 percent and 26.2 percent, respectively, while in Italy the rate increased to 12.2 percent.
The Pentagon and other US government agencies began to implement shutdown plans on Tuesday after Congress failed to reach a deal to fund the federal government in the new fiscal year beginning October 1.
A last-minute measure passed by Congress and signed by President Barack Obama will ensure the Pentagon's 1.4 million military employees worldwide will continue to receive paychecks during the shutdown. They were required to work under prior law but would not have been paid until Congress approved funding.
The new law also ensures that civilians who are required to work despite the shutdown will also be paid, Hagel said. But under law, anyone not directly involved in protecting lives and property are not considered exempt and must be placed on leave.
"Our lawyers are now looking through the (new) law that the president signed ... to see if there's any margin here or widening in the interpretation of the law regarding exempt versus non-exempt civilians," Hagel said. "Our lawyers believe that maybe we can expand the exempt status."
Hagel said he didn't know how many people the department might be able to call back from leave, or how long it would take to reach a determination, but he said it was "the priority" in the Pentagon's general counsel's office.
The shutdown has direct implications for the staff with Hagel on his week-long trip to South Korea and Japan. They are considered exempt while supporting the secretary's mission abroad, but that status may change for some when they return home on Friday, Pentagon spokesman George Little said.
The U.S. defense chief said he broke away from celebrations in South Korea on Monday to discuss the shutdown by phone with Deputy Defense Secretary Ashton Carter and Pentagon Comptroller Robert Hale. He said they would hold another round of talks on Tuesday as the shutdown went into force.
"We'll probably have to furlough about 400,000 DoD (Defense Department) civilians when they come to work here in a couple of hours," Hagel said. "Those that have been designated non-exempt will be told and will be asked to go home."
The Pentagon chief said since arriving in Seoul on Sunday night, he had been questioned by South Korean officials about the threatened shutdown and why it seemed likely to take place.
"It does have an effect on our relationships around the world and it cuts straight to the obvious question: Can you rely on the United States as a reliable partner to fulfill its commitments to its allies?" Hagel told reporters.
"Here this great republic and democracy, the United States of America, shuts down its government," he added. "The Pentagon, even though we are (partly) exempted, the military has no budget. We are still living under this dark cloud of uncertainty not knowing what's going to happen.
"It does cast a very significant pall over America's credibility with our allies when this kind of thing happens. It's nonsensical ... It's completely irresponsible," Hagel said.
He urged Congress to "find a new center of gravity of responsibility and start to govern as is their responsibility."