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Economics

The economy: The Bank of England will unveil its latest assessment of Britain’s outlook in its quarterly Inflation Report on Wednesday. The Bank is expected to point to tentative signs that the slump has begun to ease, but may raise doubts about the resurgence in growth for next year predicted by the Chancellor in the Budget.

Unemployment: The latest jobless data, due out on Wednesday, are expected to show a further rise of 85,000 in those out of work and claiming benefits in April, after an increase of 73,700 for March. The unemployment rate is expected to rise to 4.8 per cent, from 4.5 per cent in March.

Average earnings: Official data due on Wednesday are expected to show that pay growth remained subdued during March and pay excluding bonuses is expected to have grown at an annual rate of about 3 per cent in the latest three-month period.

House prices: The latest snapshot from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, due tomorrow, is tipped to show that the slump in house prices is easing off as buyer demand starts to recover.

Trade gap: Britain’s deficit on its overseas trade is expected to have narrowed a little during March to perhaps £3 billion, from £3.2 billion in February, according to official data due out tomorrow.

Eurozone inflation: The headline inflation rate in the 16-nation eurozone is tipped to be unrevised at 0.6 per cent in April, according to final figures due out on Friday.

Eurozone GDP: Official data due on Friday are forecast to show that eurozone GDP suffered a decline of 2.1 per cent in the first quarter, after a fall of 1.6 per cent in the previous three months.

French GDP: Official data due out on Friday are expected to show that France’s economy contracted by a further 1.2 per cent in the first quarter, after a 1.1 per cent decline in the previous three months.

French inflation: Consumer prices in France are expected to have risen by 0.2 per cent in April, leaving the annual rate of French inflation at about 0.2 per cent, in figures due out this week.

German GDP: Output in Germany, Europe’s biggest economy, is expected to have slumped by 3 per cent in the first quarter, after a fall of 2.1 per cent in the final quarter of last year, according to official data due out on Friday.

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