French industrial output fell four times more sharply than expected in March, increasing concerns over the state of France's economy. Output declined by a month-on-month 0.8% in March, while analysts had predicted a fall of no more than 0.2%...more

The number of homeowners facing repossession orders after failing to keep up with mortgage payments is up, says the Ministry of Justice.

It says the number of orders made by the courts in England and Wales at an early stage of the repossession process rose 17% in the first quarter of 2008. There were 27,530 orders made, up from 23,438 in the same period of 2007...more

The European Central Bank has kept interest rates for the 15-nation euro bloc steady at 4% amid increasing signs that economic growth is winding down. The ECB signalled that it was not in a rush to cut rates, as it forecast inflation would stay "high for a protracted period of time".

Food and fuel prices have pushed inflation up to a record 3.6% in March, though this eased slightly in April. Earlier, the UK's Bank of England left its main interest rate at 5%...more

Demand for London offices has fallen "significantly" in the first three months of 2008, according to property firm Savills. The retail property market is also "subdued" across the UK as the credit crunch continues to bite, it says.

Savills, which also sells top-end homes, said its Prime Central London index had fallen by 1.5% - after a 2% fall in the final quarter of 2007...more

Sales of previously-owned US homes fell 20% in March as the downturn in the housing market continued, the nation's main estate agency trade body has said.

The number of sales contracts signed during the month was 20% lower than March 2007, according to the National Association of Realtors. It added that the number of contracts signed was down 1% from February...more

The price of crude oil could soar to $200 a barrel in as little as six months, as supply continues to struggle to meet demand, a report has warned. With benchmark US light crude passing the $122 mark for the first time on Tuesday, the warning comes from Goldman Sachs energy strategist Argun Murti.

Surging demand was increasingly likely to create a "super-spike" past $200 in six months to two years' time, he said. Oil prices have now risen 25% in the last four months and by 400% from 2001...more

US workers were more productive than many analysts had forecast during the first three months of the year, figures from the Labor Department have shown.

Productivity, or the total output per hour of work, rose at an annual rate of 2.2% in the quarter, the report said. Analysts had expected an increase of closer to 1.5%, and said the gains came as firms cut back on worker hours...more

The price of a barrel of oil has risen above $120 for the first time, driven by concerns about the situations in Nigeria and northern Iraq. US light sweet crude rose to a record of $120.21 a barrel during morning trading in New York.

Another factor pushing up the oil price recently has been the weakness of the US dollar, as investors opt to invest money into commodities...more

Russia will start restricting foreign investment in key sectors of the economy such as energy and aviation. Russian President Vladimir Putin signed the law just days before his successor, President-elect Dmitry Medvedev, is set to be sworn in.

Investors have complained that the law limits access to more than half of Russia's economy...more

Spam - the scourge of every e-mail inbox - celebrates its 30th anniversary this weekend.

The first recognisable e-mail marketing message was sent on 3 May, 1978 to 400 people on behalf of DEC - a now-defunct computer-maker...more

US job figures have surprised Wall Street, falling less than expected and shifting the balance of opinion towards analysts not predicting a recession.

The US economy lost 20,000 jobs in April, according to non-farm payrolls figures from the Labor Department...more

Indian inflation is at its highest in over three years as food and energy costs continue to rise, official figures show.

India's wholesale price index, released weekly, hit 7.57% for the year up to 19 April, the highest since November 2004...more

UK house prices saw an annual fall of 0.9% in April, says the UK's biggest mortgage lender.

The Halifax also said that prices dropped by 1.3% in April compared with the previous month, pushing the price of the average home down to £189,027. The lender said it now expected a "mid-single-digit" percentage decline in prices in 2008...more

US consumer spending rose in March, beating analysts' expectations.

It added 0.4% in the month, twice what had been forecast - after a 0.1% rise in February, figures from the Commerce Department showed...more

Individual chapters of the acclaimed Marble Institute of America’s Dimension Stone Design Manual VII (DSDM) are now available for download on the Internet, the association has announced.

The DSDM is the stone industry’s single-source reference for dimensional stone design and construction specs and details. While the entire manual will continue to be offered in a hardcopy format, the option now exists to download individual chapters or the entire manual by simply going to the MIA website, www.marble-institute.com. There is a nominal charge for each chapter selected.

"While the entire manual is an important addition to reference libraries for designers, architects, contractors and others in the field, MIA frequently receives requests from those who really only need one or two chapters of the manual,” said Chuck Muehlbauer, MIA technical director. “Another benefit of the download system is the flexibility of getting the latest information quickly and without the need to wait a few days for shipping.”

MIA’s technical committee plans to update three chapters of the DSDM this summer. Those chapters are general installation, horizontal surfaces and vertical surfaces. When the update is completed they will be made available for download immediately.

For more information go online to www.marble-institute.com and click on the “Bookstore” option, then on “Technical Standards Downloadable Documents.” or call MIA at 440-250-9222.

House prices in the UK have recorded their first annual fall for 12 years, according to the Nationwide. Prices fell by 1.1% in April, the sixth monthly decline in a row, and were down 1% from the levels seen in April 2007, the building society said.

Nationwide said the price falls reflected a weakening market which had been hit by "poor affordability and tighter financial market conditions"...more

US house prices were down by 12.7% in February compared with a year ago, a survey by S&P/Case-Shiller suggests.

The survey also showed record annual price falls in 17 of its 20 measured US geographical regions...more

The slowdown in the UK mortgage market continued in March, according to figures from the Bank of England. It said the number of new mortgages approved for house purchases in March fell to a record low of 64,000, down from 72,000 the previous month.

This was the lowest level since current records began in January 1999, and was down 44% on the figure for the same month in 2007...more

The European Commission has again downgraded its forecast for eurozone growth this year, blaming weakness in the US economy and financial turmoil.

Brussels now believes the 15-nation eurozone will grow 1.7% this year, below its previous projection of 1.8%. At the same time, it believes inflation will accelerate to 3.2% for the year as a whole compared to 2.1% in 2007...more

The annual rate of house price growth has slowed for the seventh month in a row in England and Wales, according to the Land Registry. The annual increase was 3.6% in March compared with 5.3% in February, with the average home now costing £184,798.

Month-on-month, house prices fell by 0.4% in England and Wales, the seasonally-adjusted data showed. It is the latest survey to confirm house prices dropped in March, although others suggested bigger falls...more