Today ends the month of June and second quarter.  QE2 expires in the United States.  The euro has firmed 0.3% on balance to $1.4475 but broke above $1.4500 in earlier overnight trading.  Today is an active day from a data release stand-point.  A second critical Greek vote of approval is need today, this time to [...]

The euro area economy lost momentum late in the second quarter but continued to expand on the whole.  The table below looks at five key data series, comparing June readings to second-quarter average scores, first-quarter averages, December 2010 results, and lows reached in late 2008 or early 2009.  The indicators are Euroland’s composite purchasing managers [...]