European retail sales and German factory orders rise in April

Economic reports from Europe on Tuesday were quite positive.

Eurostat reports that retail sales were up in April.

In April 2011, compared with March 2011, the volume of retail trade rose by 0.9% in the euro area (EA17) and by 1.1% in the EU27. In March retail trade fell by 0.9% and 0.8% respectively.

Also up in April were German factory orders. Bloomberg reports:

Factory orders in Germany, Europe’s largest economy, rebounded in April from a slump in the previous month, led by stronger demand for investment goods.

Orders, adjusted for seasonal swings and inflation, rose 2.8 percent from March, when they plunged a revised 2.7 percent, the Economy Ministry in Berlin said in a statement today. Economists had forecast a gain of 2 percent, according to the median of 37 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey. In the year, orders rose 10.5 percent, when adjusted for work days.