In the second quarter of 2022, the 19 countries of the euro area experienced economic growth of 0.7% compared to the first quarter of the year 2022, Eurostat announced on Friday 29 July. This increase is capped at 4% compared to the second quarter of 2021. More generally, compared to the first quarter of 2022, the EU saw its GDP grow by 0.6% over this period.
“Good news! Euro area economy outperforms expectations in Q2”, commented Commissioner for Economy Paolo Gentiloni on Twitter.
However, he warned, “uncertainty remains high for the coming quarters: it is necessary to maintain unity and be ready to respond to an evolving situation as necessary”.
In detail, the situation is not homogeneous within the EU, with growth of 1.1% in Spain, 1% in Italy and 0.5% in France, while the German economy stagnated (0%).
On the other hand, although annual growth rates remained positive in all countries, declines were recorded in several Member States such as Latvia (-1.4%), Lithuania (-0.4%) and Portugal (-0.2%).
The growth in the second quarter – which belied the predictions of many analysts – comes as the inflation rate hit a record high in July, standing at 8.9% in the euro area (see other news). (Original version in French by Thomas Mangin)