Eurozone economy rebounds as restrictions recede

Eurozone economy rebounds as restrictions recede

FRANKFURT: The eurozone economy rebounded by a strong two percent in the second quarter, according to official data released on Friday, as reopened businesses lifted activity out of the pandemic doldrums. The expansion in Europe was stronger than in the United States, where the economy grew by 1.6 percent compared to the previous quarter and China, which saw a 1.3 percent expansion in the period.

Some of the biggest rates of growth were seen in Italy and Spain, the countries’ worst hit by the first wave of the COVID-19 crisis. Portugal posted a stellar increase of 4.9 percent. “The eurozone economy continues to perform like a diesel engine: it takes a while to get going but don’t underestimate it once it’s picked up steam,” said Bert Colijn, Senior Economist at ING bank.

Growth in Germany, the EU’s biggest economy, however disappointed at 1.5 percent while France renewed with solid growth after a period of stagnation in the winter. As an automaking powerhouse, “Germany suffers much more severely from international shortages, because it is much more dependent on imported inputs from Southeast Asia, from China,” said Selin Ozyurt, economist at credit insurance firm Euler Hermes.

Delta worries

The 19 countries that use the euro are