BUSINESS BRIEF

Euro zone gets welcome news, yet worries linger

11/30/2013

LONDON — Welcome news on inflation and unemployment on Friday will ease pressure on the European Central Bank to act again next week to shore up the 17-country euro zone economy. But they do little to ease longer-term worries over the recovery.

Eurostat, the E.U.’s statistics office, said unemployment was down for the first time since early 2011 and inflation edged higher in November, dampening fears that the euro zone is about to face a debilitating period of falling prices, also known as deflation.

The inflation rate rose to 0.9 percent in the year to November from October’s 0.7 percent.

Still, inflation remains well below the ECB’s target of just under 2 percent.