Euro Zone Growth Revised as Consumer Spending Recovers Sharply

Source: Eurostat.

The euro zone economy increased by more than initially estimated in the second quarter of the year, with consumer rebounding sharply after two quarters of decline during pandemic lockdowns. Euro Stoxx 50 down -0.31%, EUR USD up +0.06%

• Eurostat stated that gross domestic product in the 19 countries sharing the euro increased by 2.2% quarter-on-quarter for a 14.3% year-on-year rise.
• The economies of every euro zone country expanded except Malta, even though for Luxembourg there was no data. But, GDP volumes in the single currency bloc were still 2.5% below their pre-COVID peaks.
• The Euro zone household consumption in the April-June period added 1.9 percentage points to the overall quarterly figure, with government spending and investment adding 0.3 and 0.2 points respectively.
• A peak-to-trough decline of 0.7% inventories pulled 0.2 percentage points off the overall figure as the net impact of trade was zero.
• Euro zone employment rose 0.7% quarter-on-quarter in the second quarter and by 1.8% YOY. The former was above the initially reported 0.5% increase.