While the European Council keeps working in Brussels to vote on the future extension and the Constitutional Treaty, Eurostat has announced the figures of inflation and industrial production. "The yearly rate of inflation in the euro-zone was 1.9% in November 2006 reads the report published by the EU Statistics office against 1.6% in October". Last year the rate for the same period, though, was 2.3%. Just slightly higher is the figure for the whole of the 25-member EU, which is about 2.1%. "The lowest monthly rates have been found in Malta (0.9%), the Czech Republic (1.0), followed by Cyprus, Poland and Finland", states Eurostat. The opposite is true in Hungary (6.4%, the highest rate in Europe), Latvia and Estonia. Overall inflation is growing in 22 states. On a yearly basis, the best situations in terms of inflation can be found in Poland, Finland and Sweden. The price level is essential for monetary stability and for the Central Bank of Frankfurt’s outlining the financial policy in the euro-zone. As to industrial production, Eurostat explains that "it has decreased by 0.1% in the euro-zone in October 2006 compared with the previous month". This figure is, instead, steadily growing (over 3%) from 2005. ” ” ” “
