Growth in the euro area will be slightly stronger this year than previously forecast, the European Commission said, adding that some risks to the outlook have eased following the defeat of populist parties in France and the Netherlands.
The commission sees the 19-nation economy expanding 1.7 percent this year -- up from 1.6 percent forecast in February -- and growing 1.8 percent in 2018. In its first set of economic forecasts since the U.K. triggered its exit from the European Union, the commission said that risks to euro-area growth are more balanced, though they remain tilted to the downside. At the same time, inflation is projected to be slower than earlier forecast this year and next.
