Spain’s economy is in recession

US, WASHINGTON (ORDO NEWS) — The economy of Spain has experienced a historical recession, as the coronavirus pandemic and localization measures introduced to contain it hit the country’s economy, MarketWatch reports.

The fourth largest eurozone economy shrank 5.2% in the first quarter after rising 0.4% in the fourth quarter of 2019, Spanish statistical agency INE said in a first estimate for that period on Thursday.

Analysts polled by The Wall Street Journal forecast a decrease of only 4.4%.

This reduction is much larger than the decline observed in the first quarter of 2009, when the economy contracted 2.6% as a result of the financial crisis.

In the first quarter, Spain’s economy contracted 4.1% year on year. This is much worse than expected by economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal – a decrease of 2.9%.

Spanish data followed the publication of the first estimate of GDP in France, in which the historical decline was 5.8% in the first quarter. The French economy entered a recession after two quarters of a decline in GDP in a row.

Earlier it also became known that the eurozone economy contracted at a record pace in the I quarter, as measures to combat coronavirus sharply reduced economic activity in March.

In January-March, the GDP of 19 countries of the single currency bloc decreased by 3.8% compared to the previous quarter.

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