TV Dinners and Staycations Cut Euro Zone Inflation
Europeans' reluctance to spend on travel and eating out slowed increases in the cost of living in the euro zone in November, and the economy's deteriorating power to generate jobs offered little chance for consumers to help in economic recovery.
Annual inflation in the 17 countries sharing the euro was 2.2 percent in November, the EU's statistics office Eurostat said on Friday, confirming its initial estimate.
Employment in the single currency area fell 0.2 percent in the third quarter from the second, Eurostat said in a separate release, showing a worsening of the bloc's job rate since the summer in Europe, highlighting the impact of the debt crisis.
Household spending, constrained by government cuts and record unemployment, was mainly limited to food and clothing in November and consumer price inflation fell 0.2 percent from October, with transport, recreation, culture and restaurant costs all slipping in the month.