Eurozone Economy Shrinks in 4Q as Recession Fears Mount

Reuters
March 6, 2012

A collapse in household spending, exports and manufacturing sucked the life out of the euro zone’s economy in the final months of 2011, the EU said on Tuesday, showing the scope of the downturn that looks set to become a fully fledged recession.

Output in the 17 countries sharing the euro shrank 0.3 percent in October to December from the third quarter, the European Union’s statistics office Eurostat said, confirming its estimate of last month and giving a more detailed breakdown.

The European Commission forecasts a recession of the same magnitude this year. That would be the euro zone’s second contraction in just three years as the bloc’s debt crisis drags on a region that generates around 16 percent of the world’s economic output.

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This article was posted: Tuesday, March 6, 2012 at 7:23 am

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