Europe

摘要

1. The latest data has confirmed the sharp downturn of the Eurozone economy, and we expect the economy to remain in recession until 2009H2. Industrial production has plunged, while business confidence in the Eurozone collapsed in December to the lowest level since the series began in 1985.rn2. Data for new orders also continue to point to a prolonged period of weakness. In Germany, manufacturing new orders fell at a record pace of 24% year-on-year in November - with both domestic and foreign orders dropping sharply. Flash PMI data for the Eurozone in January confirmed this trend, with the manufacturing index at 34.5 remaining below the 50-mark separating growth from contraction for the eighth consecutive month.