Menu

In April 2009 compared with March 2009, the euro area (EA16) industrial new orders index fell by 1.0%. In March the index decreased by 0.2%. In the EU27 new orders declined by 0.5% in April 2009, after dropping by 0.5% in March. Excluding ships, railway & aerospace equipment, for which changes tend to be more volatile, industrial new orders decreased by 0.9% in the euro area, but increased by 0.3% in the EU27.

The Conference Board Leading Economic Index™ (LEI) for Australia increased 0.7 percent and The Conference Board Coincident Economic Index™ (CEI) increased 0.1 percent in April.

Russia formally launched negotiations for its future accession to the OECD by submitting a detailed “Initial Memorandum” setting out where it stands in relation to the policy standards and practices that are basic criteria for membership of the Organisation.

Fitch Ratings says in a special report that the outlook for Europe's automotive industry continues to remain difficult over the next 18 months, as it experiences one of its deepest ever downturns. However, not all companies will be affected to the same extent, as reflected by the agency's ratings of the sector.

Laid off workers today are competing in one of the toughest job markets in the nation's history and struggling with increased financial pressures. A new CareerBuilder survey finds that, despite the hardships many of these workers are facing, they are focusing on positive aspects of being in between jobs to get them through a challenging time.

The slowdown in OECD economies is reaching the bottom following the deepest decline for more than 60 years, says the OECD’s latest Economic Outlook. But recovery is likely to be weak and fragile, and the economic and social damage caused by the crisis will be long-lasting.

The world's 65-and-older population is projected to triple by mid-century, from 516 million in 2009 to 1.53 billion in 2050, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. In contrast, the population under 15 is expected to increase by only 6 percent during the same period, from 1.83 billion to 1.93 billion.

The global economic crisis is having an impact on the already poor performances of the water sector in Russia. The existing infrastructure is largely outdated resulting in frequent breakdowns and is also relatively inefficient with high energy consumption and substantial water losses. It has been estimated that a staggering sum of $459 billion (15 trillion Rubles) is needed to complete the necessary upgrade, refurbishment and new build for water and sanitation infrastructure in Russia by 2020. With the downturn affecting the market, the massive capital requirement for the implementation of the "Clean Water" programme is going to be a big challenge.

Consumer confidence in the overall economy held steady in June, according to the latest data from the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)® and CNET. The CEA-CNET Indexes also show that consumer confidence in technology and consumer electronics (CE) continues to improve.

In April 2009 the working day and seasonally adjusted current account of the euro area recorded a deficit of EUR 5.9 billion. In the financial account, combined direct and portfolio investment showed net outflows of EUR 7 billion.