THE GDP in the OECD area continues to be sluggish, registering a 0.2%
growth in Q2 in 2011, down from 0.3% in the last quarter. This is the fourth
consecutive quarter of slower growth.
The
slowdown was particularly marked in the European Union, where growth slowed to
0.2% compared to 0.8% in the previous quarter. In Germany, GDP growth slowed to
0.1% compared to 1.3% in the previous quarter, and in France, growth was 0.0%
compared to 0.9% in the previous quarter. In the United Kingdom, GDP growth
slowed to 0.2% compared to 0.5% in the previous quarter. In contrast, GDP growth
picked up to 0.3% in Italy and the United States, compared to 0.1% in the first
quarter. In the United States however, latest estimates for the first quarter
reflect a significant downward revision from the earlier estimates of 0.5%
released in June.
GDP
continued to contract in Japan but at a slower rate than in the previous quarter
(minus 0.3% compared to minus 0.9%).
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