Your current location:HOME >world >Eurozone economy on brink of recession 正文
TIME:2024-05-21 16:56:20 Source: Internet compilationEdit:world
A symphony of light consisting of bars, lines and circles in blue and yellow, the colors of the Euro
A symphony of light consisting of bars, lines and circles in blue and yellow, the colors of the European Union, illuminates the south facade of the European Central Bank (ECB) headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany, Dec 30, 2021. [Photo/Agencies]
A lack of economic growth in three out of the last four quarters has left the eurozone heading into winter on the brink of a recession.
Newly released figures showed a worse-than-expected performance for the third quarter of the year, where the economy shrank by 0.1 percent, despite the rate of inflation having fallen by a larger than anticipated amount, from 4.3 percent in September to 2.9 percent in October.
"A drop in eurozone GDP keeps a small technical recession in the second half of 2023 a realistic prospect," Bert Colijn, senior eurozone economist at ING bank, said. "With inflation falling faster than expected, the debate within the European Central Bank's governing council is set to turn more dovish, but don't expect rate cuts any time soon."
Germany, the economic heart of the continent which so often sets the tone for the fortunes of its neighbors, saw a 0.1 percent economic contraction, while Italy's remained unchanged. France grew by just 0.1 percent and Spain recorded 0.3 percent growth.
Latvia and Belgium saw the biggest growth in the bloc, although moderate figures, while Ireland suffered the sharpest contraction, with a reduction of 1.8 percent.
"The big picture is that the eurozone is struggling," Jack Allen-Reynolds, deputy chief eurozone economist at Capital Economics, wrote in a note quoted by CNN. "It has only grown by 0.1 percent over the past year, and the timeliest business surveys consistently point to activity declining at the start of (the fourth quarter)."
In September, the European Central Bank, or ECB, put up interest rates for a 10th consecutive time, with the deposit rate reaching 4 percent, the highest rate since the launch of the euro in 1999.
This was a move designed to bring down inflation, with ECB President Christine Lagarde saying at the time that the bank's governing council "considers that the key ECB interest rates have reached levels that, maintained for a sufficiently long duration, will make a substantial contribution to the timely return of inflation to the target".
The latest larger-than-expected fall in inflation is an encouraging sign, but the run of successive interest rate rises has had a damaging impact on growth.
Salomon Fiedler, an economist at Berenberg Bank, told The Daily Telegraph newspaper that the latest fall suggested the ECB was "almost certainly done with its rate hike cycle", but Tomas Dvorak, a senior economist at Oxford Economics, said the full impact on the growth of higher interest rates had not yet been felt.
"The eurozone is in for a period of economic stagnation, with growth unlikely to return until real income growth turns sufficiently positive and the peak impact of monetary tightening has passed," he warned.
Inquiry slams UK authorities for failures that killed thousands in infected blood scandal2024-05-21 16:50
Alesha Dixon storms off Britain's Got Talent stage following a contestant's 'offensive' act2024-05-21 16:25
Bridgerton's Nicola Coughlan stuns in glittering black gown as she holds hands with co2024-05-21 15:49
Astros right2024-05-21 15:13
Here comes the char2024-05-21 15:06
Race car in Sri Lanka veers off track killing 7 people and injuring 20, officials say2024-05-21 14:59
Alicia Keys is a diva in double denim as she and Maleah Joi Moon rock ab2024-05-21 14:54
Paul Mescal is a splash hit... and that's before the heart2024-05-21 14:45
Everybody may love Raymond, but Ray Romano loves Peter Boyle2024-05-21 14:33
Liverpool stays in the hunt for the Premier League title with 32024-05-21 14:28
Dodgers acquire pitcher Yohan Ramírez from Mets for cash2024-05-21 16:30
Reds pitcher Frankie Montas injured in the first inning against the Angels2024-05-21 16:22
1 killed, 9 inured when car collides with county bus in Milwaukee2024-05-21 15:43
Rosanna Arquette gushes over Pulp Fiction co2024-05-21 15:17
Nadal returns to Roland Garros to practice amid doubts over fitness and form2024-05-21 15:10
Reds pitcher Frankie Montas injured in the first inning against the Angels2024-05-21 14:55
Tesla cuts some US electric vehicle prices after difficult week2024-05-21 14:31
Liverpool stays in the hunt for the Premier League title with 32024-05-21 14:18
Storms damage homes in Oklahoma and Kansas. But in Houston, most power is restored2024-05-21 14:17
British conductor Sir Andrew Davis dies aged 80: Much2024-05-21 14:14