- Nick Kounis, an economist at ABN Amro Bank NV
A cluster of mixed economic data from Europe was released on Wednesday, as unemployment fell for the first time in two years, while consumer prices held steady, providing leeway for the ECB's President Mario Draghi to loosen its monetary policy as the 17-nation bloc is still struggling to pull of its longest-ever recession. The number of people without a work dropped by a seasonally adjusted 24,000 in June, totalling 19.266 million, while the overall jobless rate stood at 12.1%, according to the latest figures from the statistical office Eurostat. In the European Union as a whole, the unemployment rate fell to 10.9%, down from May's figure of 11%. Youth unemployment, however, remained high with 5.51 million people under 25 being jobless in the EU. The lowest rates were registered in Austria, Germany and Luxembourg with 4.6%, 5.4% and 5.7%, respectively. In a separate report, the Eurostat said that annual inflation in the 17-nation currency bloc was 1.6% in July, the same as in the preceding month, meeting analysts' expectations. It is the sixth month in a row when the rate has been below the ECB's 2% target level. The prices of food and beverages led to the upward pressure, advancing 3.5% compared with just a 3.2% increase in June. Even though the Eurozone has been mired in a recession for six quarter, some signs of a turnaround are emerging, including some improvement in manufacturing sector and economic confidence.
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