As we move ever closer to March 14th, the day Microsoft is rumoured to drop the price on all 360 SKUs across Europe, more and more evidence is coming in to support the enticing claim. Going hand in hand with last week’s report today are the advertisements of a Dutch retail store Bart Smit and the Financial Times Deutschland’s scoop on the rumoured price cut.

If Bart Smit’s ads spotted in the wild are to be believed, all three Xbox 360 models are in for a welcome price slash come this Friday, with the Elite dropping to 399.95 EUR, the Premium (Pro) falling down to 299.95 EUR, and the Arcade sinking down to a low price of 199.95 EUR.

Lending some heavy weight to the rumour is the Financial Times Deutschland’s “exclusive” report which states that all three units are to come down in price later this week. Given that FTD is a renowned financial newspaper in Germany, it’s hard to believe that they got it all wrong.

Should the new prices come into effect later on in the week, the Arcade unit would become the cheapest “next-generation” console in Europe, underselling Nintendo’s Wii by as much as 50 EUR. As such, Microsoft would have a leg up on its rivals both in terms of games and pricing.

Update: That was quick – Microsoft has officially confirmed the price drop all across Europe. Major Nelson has compiled a rather nice list of the old and new prices and, to our surprise, the Premium and Elite units will cost less than first thought:

Thanks to Darren/Kainz Uk for alerting us to the confirmation!

All we need now is official confirmation from Microsoft. Until then, tell us what you think in the comments section below.

Thanks to Xanion for letting us know about the ads.