Frankfurt, Jan. 31 (BNA): The European economy slowed down significantly at the end of last year with higher cases of COVID-19 driven by the omicron variable accumulating on top of supply shortages and rising energy prices affecting the purchasing power of consumers. The result: an economic winter of discontent that may not go away until later this year.
Much of the standoff came in Germany, Europe’s largest economy, where difficulty in obtaining spare parts crippled its export-heavy manufacturing economy. France, Spain and Italy showed stronger growth, according to the Associated Press.
The European Union’s statistics agency said on Monday that 19 countries use the euro, growth in the last three months of 2021 was 0.3%. That compares with 2.2% growth in the July-September quarter.
For the year, it was 5.2%, underlining how Europe’s economic recovery from the pandemic has been slower than the recovery in the United States, where growth in 2021 was 5.7%. Growth in the US has been boosted by what economists say is a relatively larger share of federal stimulus spending than in Europe.
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