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RETAIL SALES ACROSS the eurozone continue to remain static with a 0.1 per cent drop in the annual figures according to Eurostat.
The EU’s statistical office revealed that he volume of retail trade has fallen on the previous year in each of the last six months.
In May of this year sales within the category of ‘food, drinks and tobacco’ were 1.5 per cent down as compared with the same month in 2012. Sales of non-food items showed a slight rise on last year, climbing by 0.8 per cent.
Among the EU member states for which data is available, total retail trade fell in seven and rose in fourteen.
May however did show some signs of reversing the current trend with retail sales growth of 1 per cent across the Eurozone in comparison with April. It is the first time since January that there has been a monthly increase. Eurostat said that Ireland was one of the top five countries to show retail growth in May with monthly growth of 2.4 per cent.
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And still the elephant in the room remains elusive, Its name, Austerity.
They continue with austerity because they dont know what else to do.
You know that only 3 EU countries are actually spending less as a percentage of GDP than their pre-recession figures; Germany, Sweden and Malta. Two of which have clearly weathered this the best.
And the opposite? Italy, Spain and Greece have all seen spending increases.
Our nation still cannot balance our massive budget deficit, our government continues to spend far more than we have, so I ask you, where is the austerity?
If I ran my business in the frivolous way our government runs our country people would tell me it serves me right I went out of business.
Austerity has not failed because we have not had austerity.
”They continue with austerity because they dont know what else to do.”
they know what to do alright – and Austerity works – for the Rich . they get a more docile labour force [= less costs = more profit ] , and if eg a bank fails – it gets bailed out –
So for the Rich – Austerity is a win – win situation – and the reverse for the majority .
—-and they even get the taxpayers to pay their employees wages ie the Politicians.
why are not up against a wall !!.
Jim that’s complete trash, besides just the mindless tirade against successful people have you any actual intelligent alternatives to bring to the debate?
Also, if you’ll recall, it was the libertarian and pro-market commentators that argued the banks should be allowed fail, and the socialists who said that a bailout was the only option, people have very short memories in this country.
@ Adam M .
Actaully the Labour party – as it was then – opposed the bailouts .
MD Higgins at the time
”the Minister for Finance is describing the external conditions, such as what he calls “the credit crunch” as a kind of international flu. I wish to state immediately that those who want to look at the different models of international finance must conclude that a debate is taking place at present in Washington about how one should respond to the failure and collapse of the neoliberal model of non-regulation.
Higgins also states;
There are matters for which the Government has explicit responsibility. One cannot blame the relationship between the Fianna Fáil-led Government and the speculative component of the building industry on the Washington consensus.”
actually what u say is Trash – - successful people – eg at Anglo Irish or AIB . Anglo Irish was not even a proper bank – just a company that gave out gambling money to speculators – and when they lost – they went running to the government .
But I suppose u could call them successful gangsters – they appear to have gotten away with it
Hardly surprising, people have no spare cash anymore
They keep announcing these kind of figures – does anyone in authority think any more?
Ye’ve taken all our money and we daren’t spend what little savings we may have!
Jesus someone is on the ball, do they realise we have no fcuking money to spend.
Why cant they twig that WE HAVE NO MONEY!
If thy lived in the real world thy would see that we are broke .
To combat the economic slide, politicians must take to heart the problems of the common people by contacting those who are “in the know” about the economic crisis. Some counties in the US for example have used the services of the Orlando Bisegna Index to solve the problems of deficit, and unemployment. If it works on the small scale I don’t see it can’t work on a larger, national scale.
have your say