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In August 2010 compared with July 2010, the euro area (EA16) industrial new orders index rose by 5.3%. In July the index fell by 1.8%. In the EU27, new orders increased by 3.6% in August 2010, after a decline of 1.6% in July. Excluding ships, railway & aerospace equipment, for which changes tend to be more volatile, industrial new orders rose by 4.1% in the euro area and by 3.3% in the EU27.

Small business economic confidence rebounded in October as more small business owners report economic conditions for their businesses and for the country are getting better, according to the Discover® Small Business WatchSM. The monthly index rose to 84.2 in October, up 10.4 points from 73.8 in September – the biggest one month gain since April.

As this year’s critical holiday season approaches, CFOs have shifted their focus from reducing operating costs to driving profitable sales through better strategy execution, improvements to merchandising effectiveness and inventory management, according to a new Global Retail CFO survey from PwC's Retail Consulting Services.

A new study released by Bankrate, Inc. shows that the costs of checking account fees have risen again this year to an all-time high.

China suppliers believe the yuan's appreciation will affect exports negatively, if the currency appreciates by at least two percent against the US dollar, according to a survey of 239 exporters by Global Sources.

The European Central Bank (ECB) is publishing its report on the results of the “Survey on the access to finance of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the euro area”. The survey was conducted between 27 August and 22 September 2010, and covered 5,312 firms in the euro area. The associated ECB report provides information on the financial situation, financing needs and access to financing of SMEs in the euro area, compared with large firms, in the six preceding months (i.e. March to September 2010).

Small business bankruptcy filings declined more than 11 percent in the third quarter of this year compared to a year ago and have decreased nearly 19 percent since their peak in Q2 2009, Equifax Inc. The decrease is the fifth consecutive quarter in which commercial bankruptcies have declined based on data from the company's quarterly research on small business activity.

Employers took 1,486 mass layoff actions in September that resulted in the separation of 133,379 workers, seasonally adjusted, as measured by new filings for unemployment insurance benefits during the month, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. Each action involved at least 50 persons from a single employer. The number of mass layoff events in September decreased by 60 from the prior month, the third consecutive over-the-month decrease. The number of associated initial claims decreased by 16,813 to its lowest level since April 2008. In September, 345 mass layoff events were reported in the manufacturing sector, seasonally adjusted, resulting in 34,168 initial claims. Both figures declined over the month.

"Investments, pensions and securities", "real estate services" and "internet service provision" are the three markets most likely to be failing consumers across the EU, according to the autumn 2010 Consumer Markets Scoreboard. Among goods markets, "second-hand cars", "clothing and footwear" and meat have scored lowest. At the other end of the spectrum, airlines show good results in spite of the disruptions of spring 2010 and consumers also appreciate cultural goods and services. The Scoreboard ranks consumer markets by looking at indicators such as comparability, consumer trust, consumer satisfaction, problems, complaints, the ease of switching providers, prices, etc. The purpose is to identify markets that appear most at risk of malfunctioning, for follow-up studies, which analyse problems in-depth and identify policy responses. For the first time, the Scoreboard ranks as many as 50 different markets – from food to domestic appliances to car repair – in all EU countries.

The holiday season may be merry and bright for online retailers, according to results of Shop.org’s eHoliday Study conducted by BIGresearch. Nearly two-thirds of retailers (63.8%) expect their company’s online sales to grow by fifteen percent or more compared to last holiday season, up from less than half of retailers (45.8%) who had those expectations last year.