INFLATION FALLS WHILE SHOP SALES DIVE

PALMA/MADRID/LONDON
SPAIN'S EU harmonised inflation eased more sharply than expected in October, data showed yesterday prompting the country's economy minister to suggest that the European Central Bank now has more room to cut interest rates but his encouraging words did little to lift the spirits of the Balearic retail sector which has reported a 7.3 percent fall in trade over the past year.

The rate of inflation dropped to 3.6 percent in October from 4.6 percent in September, according to preliminary data from Spain's National Statistics Institute showed.