Shrinks by record 12.1 percent

Eurozone economy shrinks by record 12.1 percent in second quarter

Spain was worst hit, followed by Portugal and France.

By LAURENZ GEHRKE

The eurozone economy shrank by 12.1 percent in the second quarter of this year while the EU's overall GDP contracted by 11.9 percent, the bloc's statistics office Eurostat said Friday.

"These were by far the sharpest declines observed since time series started in 1995," Eurostat said.

Among EU members for which Eurostat obtained economic data, Spain recorded the steepest decline in the second quarter compared to the previous one at -18.5 percent, followed by Portugal (-14.1 percent) and France (-13.8 percent). At -5.1 percent, Lithuania recorded the mildest decline.

Italy reported a contraction of 12.4 percent, while the German economy shrank by 10.1 percent.

The sharp contraction between April and June followed a first-quarter decrease of 3.6 percent in the eurozone and 3.2 percent across the EU.

Calling the figures "a preliminary flash estimate," Eurostat said the data was seasonally adjusted and reflected the coronavirus containment measures adopted by most EU countries in the spring. Findings are "based on data sources that are incomplete and subject to further revisions," it said.

Compared with the second quarter of 2019, seasonally adjusted GDP decreased by 15 percent in the eurozone and by 14.4 percent in the EU.

Eurostat said it will publish new estimates for the second quarter on August 14.