According to an estimate published by the EU’s Statistical Office (Eurostat) on Tuesday 9 March, GDP fell by 6.6% in the euro area and by 6.2% in the European Union in 2020, having increased by 1.3% and 1.6% respectively in 2019. The data is slightly lower to an estimate provided in mid-February that predicted falls of 6.8% in the euro area and 6.4% in the EU (see EUROPE 12659/4).
Compared to the previous quarter, seasonally adjusted GDP decreased by 0.7% in the euro area and by 0.5% in the EU in the fourth quarter of 2020.
These decreases follow both the strong rebound in the third quarter (+12.5% in the euro area and +11.6% in the EU) and the decreases seen in the second quarter of 2020 (-11.6% in the euro area and -11.2% in the EU), which were the largest since the time series began in 1995.
At the end of 2020, GDP volumes are slightly higher than in the fourth quarter of 2016 for the euro area and the first quarter of 2017 for the EU.
Compared with the third quarter, growth was strongest in Romania (+4.8%), Malta (+3.8%), Croatia and Greece (both +2.7%) in the fourth quarter of 2020. The largest decreases were recorded in Ireland (-5.1%), Austria (-2.7%), Italy (-1.9%) and France (-1.4%). Growth was weak in Germany (+0.3%) and Spain (+0.4%).
Following rises of +1.2% in the euro area and +1.0% in the EU in 2019, employment fell by 1.6% in the euro area and 1.5% in the EU in 2020. This did, however, include an increase of 0.3% in the euro area and 0.4% in the EU in the fourth quarter of 2020 compared to the previous quarter.
Based on seasonally adjusted data, 206 million people were employed in the EU at the end of 2020, including 157.9 million in the euro area. Compared to the end of 2019, this represents a decrease of 3.1 million in the euro area and 3.5 million in the EU, as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)