Sun, Sea and Exports Give South Europe Reason to Feel Smug
- Spain, Portugal, Greece seen as top euro-zone performers
- PMI data show France and Germany remain in contraction
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Southern European economies that were long sneered at by their richer northern neighbors have turned the tables as they cement their role as growth drivers in the sputtering euro area.
Business surveys by S&P Global released this week showed Spain and Italy beat economists’ expectations with faster expansion in March. A manufacturing gauge for Greece indicated a similar trend. This helped the index for the currency bloc emerge from contraction for the first time in 10 months.