Economic growth in the eurozone rose by 0.1% in the second quarter compared to the previous quarter, according to the initial estimate published on Wednesday by the European statistics office, Eurostat.
Analysts had anticipated stagnation as the 20 countries sharing the single currency continue to show uneven performance.
France and Spain reported better-than-expected figures, while Germany faced an unexpected decline during the April-June period.
In the first quarter, eurozone growth was recorded at 0.6%, attributed to Ireland’s surprising performance. Across the European Union, GDP increased by 0.2% from April to June, following a 0.5% rise in the previous quarter, as per Eurostat’s data. Spain (up 0.7%), Portugal (up 0.6%), and Estonia (up 0.5%) were significant contributors to the second-quarter growth.
Ireland, however, experienced a decline of 1.0%, while Germany and Italy each saw a decrease of 0.1%. Belgium’s GDP grew by 0.2%.
Germany’s decline, the largest economy in Europe, was primarily due to reduced investments in construction, despite a rebound in household consumption. This decline contrasts with the 0.3% growth recorded earlier in the year, as revised figures show.
