World News: World Watch
EURO ZONE</br></br>Inflation Rate Eases,</br></br>Cushioning Monetary Policy</br></br>The euro zone's annual inflation rate eased in August, indicating the European Central Bank has ample room to maintain its ultra-loose monetary policy, data from the European Union's Eurostat statistics agency showed.</br></br>Average annual inflation in the 16 countries that share the euro eased to 1.6% from 1.7% in July, in line with the preliminary estimate published Aug. 31, Eurostat said. On a month-to-month basis, the consumer-price index rose 0.2% in August after falling 0.3% in July. The figures matched market watchers' forecasts. The annual rate has been under the ECB's medium-term target of just below 2% since December 2008, Eurostat said.