The news from Brussels was as bad as had been expected. The European Union's statistics office announced on Friday that the euro zone economy had slid into recession after another quarter of negative growth. Inflation, meanwhile, has stopped completely. The bad news keeps coming. After Europe's biggest economy, Germany, announced it was in recession on Thursday it was the turn of the euro zone on Friday. The European Union's statistics office, Eurostat, said that the economy in the 15 states that use the euro shrank in the third quarter. With negative growth having been measured in the second quarter as well, the contraction now meets the commonly accepted definition for a recession. A sign reading in Italian "Everything 50% off" in a shop in Rome. Recession has hit Italy. It marks the first ever recession to hit the euro zone since the common European currency was introduced in 2002. The economy contracted by 0.2 percent in the July-September period, the same amount as it had declined from April to June.
The news from Brussels was as bad as had been expected. The European Union's statistics office announced on Friday that the euro zone economy had slid into recession after another quarter of negative growth. Inflation, meanwhile, has stopped completely.
The bad news keeps coming. After Europe's biggest economy, Germany, announced it was in recession on Thursday it was the turn of the euro zone on Friday. The European Union's statistics office, Eurostat, said that the economy in the 15 states that use the euro shrank in the third quarter. With negative growth having been measured in the second quarter as well, the contraction now meets the commonly accepted definition for a recession.
A sign reading in Italian "Everything 50% off" in a shop in Rome. Recession has hit Italy. It marks the first ever recession to hit the euro zone since the common European currency was introduced in 2002. The economy contracted by 0.2 percent in the July-September period, the same amount as it had declined from April to June.
The global financial crisis is taking an increasingly heavy toll on Europe's economy as fresh economic projections - to be officially confirmed by the European Commission on Friday (14 November) - show that the 15-strong euro area has entered recession, its first in the structure's history. The eurozone's economy contracted by 0.2 percent between July and September 2008, following a 0.2 percent decline during the second quater of this year, the BBC reports. Two consecutive quaters of contraction amounts to a definition of recession. The financial criris has translated into a sharp economic downturn The pesimistic outlook follows Germany's announcement on Thursday (13 November) that its economy has officially plunged into recession. The EU's most powerful economy shrunk by 0.4 percent in the second quarter and by 0.5 percent in the third quarter of 2008, with the Federal Statistics Office saying "A negative effect on gross domestic product came from foreign trade, with a strong increase in imports and weakening exports."
The global financial crisis is taking an increasingly heavy toll on Europe's economy as fresh economic projections - to be officially confirmed by the European Commission on Friday (14 November) - show that the 15-strong euro area has entered recession, its first in the structure's history.
The eurozone's economy contracted by 0.2 percent between July and September 2008, following a 0.2 percent decline during the second quater of this year, the BBC reports. Two consecutive quaters of contraction amounts to a definition of recession.
The financial criris has translated into a sharp economic downturn
The pesimistic outlook follows Germany's announcement on Thursday (13 November) that its economy has officially plunged into recession.
The EU's most powerful economy shrunk by 0.4 percent in the second quarter and by 0.5 percent in the third quarter of 2008, with the Federal Statistics Office saying "A negative effect on gross domestic product came from foreign trade, with a strong increase in imports and weakening exports."
