According to the preliminary data released by Eurostat on January 31, after seasonal and workday adjustments, the gross domestic product (GDP) of the euro area will increase by 3.5% in 2022, while that of the EU will increase by 3.6%.
According to the data, after seasonal adjustment, the euro area economy grew 0.1% month-on-month and 1.9% year-on-year in the fourth quarter of last year; The European Union's economy grew zero month-on-month, up 1.8% year on year.
The data also showed that the economies of Ireland, Latvia, Spain and Portugal performed relatively well in the fourth quarter of last year, with a month-on-month growth of 3.5%, 0.3%, 0.2% and 0.2% respectively. The economy of Germany, the main economy of the European Union, performed poorly, falling 0.2% month-on-month. The Italian economy fell by 0.1% month-on-month, while the Lithuanian economy fell by 1.7% month-on-month.
Dutch International Group, a well-known financial institution, said that the economy of the euro zone avoided contraction in the fourth quarter of last year, which was a "narrow escape". Most economies are currently at a standstill of near zero growth.
Bert Klein, senior economist of the Eurozone of the Netherlands International Group, pointed out that the data showed that domestic demand in many European countries was weak, imports fell sharply, and interest rates were under pressure. This means that the euro area economy will be weak at the beginning of 2023, and the possibility of negative economic growth in the first quarter cannot be ruled out.
