Inflation in the 16 nations that use the euro remained negative for a fifth consecutive month in October while unemployment continued to rise, the EU statistics agency said Friday, suggesting the region"s economic recovery was sluggish, AP reported. Consumer prices were down 0.1 percent from a year earlier, compared with a 0.3 percent annual drop in September. Analysts and officials had expected a rise on the year as companies and consumers started spending more after a long freeze in demand. The euro"s recent surge against the dollar undermined that because it reduced the eurozone cost of dollar-priced oil. The euro rose to a 14-month high of $1.5020 against the dollar on Oct. 23. Eurostat also reported Friday that eurozone unemployment rose to 9.7 percent in September, the highest level since Jan. 1999. Some 184,000 more people were seeking work from August when the rate was 9.6 percent. -- SPA
