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Pastimes : Clown-Free Zone... sorry, no clowns allowed -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Haim R. Branisteanu who wrote (147118)	1/30/2002 10:43:34 AM
From: Haim R. Branisteanu	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 436258

01/30 09:17 European Economies: French Business - Confidence Rises (Update2) By Francois de Beaupuy Paris, Jan. 30 (Bloomberg) -- French manufacturers' confidence rose for a second month in January, as executives planned to increase production, adding to signs that Europe will avoid a recession. An index based on a survey of about 2,000 companies rose to 92 from a revised 91, national statistics office Insee said. The index reached an eight-year low of 89 in November. In Germany, France's largest trading partner, business confidence rose for a third month in January, a report showed Monday. ``The outlook has become a bit brighter since mid-November, though we're not back to business-as-usual yet,'' said Alain Tingaud, chief executive officer of InfoVista SA, a maker of software that tracks the performance of phone networks. He expects his company to become profitable in the fourth quarter. France's economy, Europe's third largest, probably grew 0.1 percent in the fourth quarter, the slowest pace in five years, the Bank of France said. Some companies say business may pick up. Usinor SA, Europe's biggest steelmaker, said today that demand may recover this year after fourth-quarter sales fell 15 percent. ..................................................................... The French economy grew ``around'' 2 percent last year, down from 3.5 percent in 2000, the government said. German economic growth slowed to 0.6 percent last year from 3.4 percent in 2000. French Finance Minister Laurent Fabius said earlier this week economic growth is likely to be less than his initial prediction of 2.25 percent-2.75 percent this year. He's expected to provide a new forecast in coming days. quote.bloomberg.com 01/30 03:02 Italian Dec. Producer Prices Fall 0.1%, Decline 1.3% in Year By Iain Rogers Rome, Jan. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Italian producer prices fell for a third month in December, as a 30 percent drop in the price of crude oil since early September helped push down fuel costs. The cost of goods as they left Italy's factories, farms and mines fell 0.1 percent from November and dropped 1.3 percent from December 2000, matching economists' expectations, the government said. Average producer-price inflation was 1.9 percent last year.