Howard Archer Euro Quotations

Manufacturers will be hoping that healthier growth in the euro zone and a recently softer pound will increasingly feed through to give them with a significant boost in 2006.

The slowdown in euro zone growth will not deter the ECB from raising interest rates in March and a further hike remains very likely in June.

Euro region labor markets are finally beginning to see genuine, if somewhat limited, improvement, boosted by the pickup in growth since mid-2005. Rising employment is key to boosting consumer spending across the euro region.

The euro zone's upturn is still young and relatively fragile with significant question marks still hanging over the long-term strength of domestic demand.