LONDON (AFX) - Euro zone figures due for release next week are expected to vindicate the European Central Bank's unexpectedly bold interest rate cut of 50 basis points, according to economists. Economists said the figures are likely to confirm the decline in euro zone inflation and contraction in economic activity which prompted the ECB to cut rates so decisively. They said euro zone final consumer prices for October should have little capacity to surprise following the first estimate on Nov 5. It showed inflation dropped to 2.4 pct year-on-year, the lowest level since August last year. Economists said preliminary economic growth figures from Italy and the Netherlands will give an early indication of third-quarter activity in the euro zone. Italian gross domestic product is expected to show a decline over the third quarter, while growth in the Netherlands is likely to have flattened out, economists said. "At more than three times the size of the Dutch economy, the Italian data is likely to attract the most attention. But the information content of the Italian data will be limited," UBS Warburg economist Edward Stansfield said. Economists warned that while Germany is likely to post sharply lower retail sales for September, compared with August, the figures are notoriously volatile and therefore may give misleading signals about euro zone trends.