The eurozone dodged recession by growing 0.1% in the fourth quarter of 2022

The GDP of the euro zone grew by 3.5% in the year as a whole and that of the EU, by 3.6%

14 Feb. () –

Eurozone growth slowed substantially in the fourth quarter of 2022, when the region’s gross domestic product (GDP) expanded at a rate of 0.1%, compared with 0.3% in the previous three months, according to preliminary data published by Eurostat.

In this way, despite the fact that the expansion of the euro zone stopped at the end of last year to the lowest level since the first quarter of 2021, the region managed to avoid the technical recession, which implies two consecutive quarters of contraction in activity.

In the European Union (EU) as a whole, GDP growth stagnated in the fourth quarter of 2022, after the expansion of three tenths observed in the third quarter of last year.

Compared to the fourth quarter of 2021, the growth of the euro zone was 1.9%, while that of the whole of the Twenty-seven was 1.8%.

Thus, according to the second estimate of annual growth for 2022, GDP increased by 3.5% in the euro area and 3.6% in the EU. By comparison, US GDP growth in 2022 was 2.1%, after moderating to 0.7% in the fourth quarter.

Among the countries for which data was available, Ireland (+3.5%) posted the largest GDP increase in the fourth quarter compared to the previous three months, followed by Denmark, Cyprus and Romania (+1.1% each). .

In contrast, the largest decreases were registered in Poland (-2.4%), Lithuania (-1.7%), as well as in Austria (-0.7%) and Sweden (-0.6%).

According to the latest projections from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), published at the end of January, the euro area’s GDP will grow by 0.7% in 2023, compared to the previously estimated 0.5%, and 1.6% next year. , two tenths less than anticipated in October.

Specifically, the IMF now forecasts that Germany will manage to grow by 0.1% in 2023, when in October it anticipated a contraction of 0.3%, while for 2024 it expects a German expansion of 1.4%, one tenth less than in October, while for France it maintains the forecast of 0.7% this year and 1.6% a year later.

Likewise, the international organization has improved its forecast for Italy in 2023 by eight tenths, with 0.6%, although it lowers next year’s four tenths, to 0.9%.

In the case of Spain, the IMF has revised downward its forecasts for 2023 and 2024, with reductions of one and two tenths, respectively, to 1.1% this year and 2.4% in 2024.