Economics
Euro Area’s Seven Years of Growth Give Way to Record Slump
- First-quarter GDP data to reveal early hit from virus shutdown
- Current quarter expected to show an even deeper contraction
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The euro-area economy’s expansion has come to a dramatic halt, pummeled by a pandemic that’s killed thousands and destroyed businesses and livelihoods.
First-quarter GDP data due Thursday will show a 3.7% contraction, the first since 2013, capturing the early hit to the economy from shutdowns to contain the coronavirus. The current quarter is likely to be even worse, with a disastrous deterioration in economic prospects likely to produce the deepest recession on record.