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Brisk exports, strong investment and buoyant consumption will lift economic growth in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to 11.2% this year, up from an earlier estimate of 10%, says the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in a new major report.

The first estimate for the euro area (EA13) trade balance with the rest of the world in July 2007 gave a 4.6 bn euro surplus, compared with +1.1 bn in July 2006. The June 20072 balance was +7.6 bn, compared with +1.6 bn in June 2006. In July 2007 compared with June 2007, seasonally adjusted exports fell by 0.5%, while imports rose by 3.6%.

Working conditions in Slovenia are in many respects on par with those in the former EU15 Member States, the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound) will tell social policy-makers in Slovenia. There are, however, there are a number of crucial issues relating to work organisation and health which Slovenian policy-makers are challenged to tackle.

Developing Asian economies will register solid economic growth in 2007, driven by fast growth in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and India, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) says in a new major report.

A survey conducted for the European Commission by Eurobarometer confirms that there is a strong interest in most European countries, particularly in the old EU member states, in health research as well as in science and technology. The interest is even higher than in international news and economic and social affairs. Europeans are especially paying attention to the added value that health and medical research can bring to their daily lives. The survey indicates also that citizens trust the scientific and medical professions above all others when it comes to information on science or health research, and that international institutions – including the European Union itself – are significantly more trusted than regional or national governmental sources.

The European Court of Justice confirmed that statutory GMO-free regions are illegal. The Court dismissed the appeals of Upper Austria and the Austrian Government against their ban on the use of biotech crops in the region of Upper Austria.

The European Commission outlined new plans to accelerate the drive for safer, cleaner and smarter cars. The Commission will start negotiations with European and Asian automotive industry associations later this year to reach an agreement on offering the pan-European in-vehicle emergency call system (eCall) as a standard option in all new cars from 2010. It will also further promote the take-up of other life-saving technologies and investigate how technology can help make cars greener and smarter.

It's official: Web 2.0 has gone global. What was once an industry focused almost entirely in the San Francisco Bay area has expanded into new markets within the U.S. as well as in Europe and Israel, according to new data released by Dow Jones VentureOne and Ernst & Young LLP.

The U.S. Import Price Index decreased 0.3 percent in August, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported, following a 1.3 percent advance in July. The August decline was led by a 1.3 percent downturn in petroleum prices. In contrast, export prices rose 0.2 percent in August after edging down 0.1 percent the previous month.

Subprime worries, softening job markets, rising gas prices and an unstable stock market have taken a serious toll on consumer sentiment, according to the most recent results of the RBC CASH (Consumer Attitudes and Spending by Household) Index, which measured the attitudes of 1,000 Americans.