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Kelley Blue Book, the provider of new car and used car information, announces the results of the latest Kelley Blue Book Market Intelligence survey of in-market new-car shoppers on kbb.com, detailing consumers' likeliness to buy a car from a bankrupt U.S. auto manufacturer.

The European Commission is proposing an EU Shared Commitment for Employment: to face the crisis, we need a new and strengthened cooperation between all the key actors, including the EU institutions, Member States and trade unions and employers' organisations. Our shared commitment puts forward priorities and actions which we hope all actors can buy into and - when implemented and in conjunction with actions in other fields - should be an effective response to the crisis and growing unemployment. These priorities and actions are underpinned by suggestions on how to make best use of all EU financial resources available. The priorities and actions will need to be tailored to the changing labour markets and budgetary situations of each Member State. The Shared Commitment will also contribute to Europe's role in shaping the global effort of the international community towards recovery and sustainable growth.

GDP fell by 2.5% in the euro area (EA16) and by 2.4% in the EU27 during the first quarter of 2009, compared with the previous quarter, according to first estimates released by Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Communities . In the fourth quarter of 2008, growth rates were -1.8% in the euro area and -1.7% in the EU27.

In April 2009 compared with March 2009, the industrial producer price index fell by 1.0% in the euro area (EA16) and by 1.1% in the EU27. In March, prices decreased by 0.7% and 0.5% respectively. In April 2009 compared with April 2008, industrial producer prices dropped by 4.6% in the euro area and by 3.9% in the EU27.

The World Bank warned that the impact of climate change in the Europe and Central Asia Region* will be more significant than expected due to a lingering post-Soviet legacy of environmental mismanagement and the poor state of much of the Region’s infrastructure, leaving the countries poorly prepared to adapt.

The VocaLink Take Home Pay Index has continued its rapid decline this year to reach a new all time low of 1.1% in May. This unprecedented fall in take home pay has been driven by the deterioration in the labour market, with unemployment at its highest since 1996, falling inflation and the slashing of discretionary bonus payments enabling firms to pass through weak wage settlements.

Nokia is the number one mobile phone brand according to 112,000 teenagers, across 30 markets, who took part in the Global Habbo Youth Survey Brand Update 2009 (GHYS).

Older workers are much less confident about their retirement security than they were two years ago as a result of the financial crisis, according to a new survey by Watson Wyatt, a leading global consulting firm. The survey also found that workers with defined benefit (DB) plans are much more confident in their retirement prospects than those who participate only in a defined contribution (DC) plan.

Employers are expected to remain cautious about adding accounting and finance professionals in the third quarter, according to the Robert Half International Financial Hiring Index. Five percent of chief financial officers (CFOs) expect to hire full-time employees during the third quarter while 8 percent anticipate personnel reductions. The majority of respondents (85 percent) say they plan to maintain their current staff levels.

In the next three months, 8 percent of chief information officers (CIOs) plan to add information technology (IT) staff and 6 percent plan personnel cutbacks, according to the third-quarter Robert Half Technology IT Hiring Index and Skills Report. The net 2 percent hiring increase is unchanged from the second-quarter forecast. The majority of respondents, 85 percent, plan to maintain current staffing levels.