The destination board for the eurozone growth train is still marked “Hope,” but the passengers are stuck at a station called “Disappointment.”
Friday’s reading of 0.3% growth in eurozone gross domestic product in the second quarter from the first, or 1.3% annualized, was lower than economists had forecast. Freshly released data for Germany, France and Italy—representing two-thirds of the currency bloc’s output—all came in on the soft side, with France recording zero growth in the second quarter after 0.7% in the first. Spain remains alone among the big four eurozone economies in showing real acceleration, growing 1% in the second quarter.
Image: People relax on the beach in Benidorm, Spain. Spain remains alone among the big four eurozone economies in showing real acceleration, growing 1% in the second quarter. PHOTO: REUTERS
