IMF warns euro zone to shrink 4.2 percent this year, more action needed to support E. Europe

September 14th, 2009 EU forecasts end to recessionBRUSSELS — The European Union said Monday that the recession in the euro-zone and EU will likely have ended in the third quarter with the resumption of modest economic growth. In an update to its May forecast, the EU cast doubt on strength of the upswing, saying it won't change its prediction for the euro-zone and EU economies to shrink by 4 percent this year.

September 2nd, 2009 Spending lifts euro economy in 2QBRUSSELS — Higher household spending supported the euro zone economy in the second quarter, the European Union statistics agency said Wednesday, in another upbeat sign for growth prospects. Eurostat confirmed an earlier estimate that the economy of the 16 nations that use the euro shrank by just 0.1 percent quarter-on-quarter, far less severely than officials had forecast, due to growth in the two biggest euro nations Germany and France.

August 13th, 2009 Euro area economy contracted only 0.1 pct in Q2LONDON — The recession in the 16 countries that use the euro eased substantially between April and June after unexpected growth in Germany and France, the euro zone's two largest economies, official figures showed Thursday. The European Union's statistics office Eurostat revealed that the euro zone's gross domestic product fell by only 0.1 percent in the second quarter from the previous three month period.

July 31st, 2009 Euro-zone prices fall for second monthBRUSSELS — The EU statistics agency says euro-zone consumer prices fell 0.6 percent in July from a year ago. Lower demand for energy and other goods has caused prices to plunge in the region, according to figures released Friday.

July 30th, 2009 IMF says euro governments must clean up banksLONDON — The 16 countries that use the euro are unlikely to start growing again until some time in 2010 and must do more to shore up their banks if they want to keep the downturn from lasting longer, the International Monetary Fund said Thursday. In its latest update for Europe, the IMF's staff forecast that the euro zone will shrink by 4.8 percent this year alone and by 0.3 percent in 2010 despite the anticipated recovery some time in the year.

July 23rd, 2009 Nearly 1 in 5 young Europeans out of workBRUSSELS — Nearly one in five young Europeans could not find a job in the first three months of this year as the region sank into the worst recession in 60 years, the EU statistics agency Eurostat said Thursday. Some five million workers aged between 15 and 24 cannot find a job, it said.

July 3rd, 2009 Euro zone retail sales down 0.4 percent in MayLONDON — Retail sales fell in May in the 16 countries that use the euro, in a further sign that consumers aren't optimistic about their future in the midst of a deep and widespread recession. Eurostat, the EU's statistics office, says retail sales in the euro zone fell by 0.4 percent from the previous month.

June 12th, 2009 Euro zone industrial output slumps in AprilLONDON — Industrial production in the 16 countries that use the euro slumped in April, official figures showed Friday, stoking fears that the euro zone remains in the grip of recession despite signs elsewhere that a recovery of sorts may be underway. The European Union's statistics office Eurostat said a 1.9 percent drop in April — the eighth consecutive monthly fall — pushed the annual rate of decline down to a record 21.6 percent.

May 13th, 2009 Euro zone industrial output shrinks 2 pct in MarchLONDON — The 16 countries that use the euro currency saw industrial output shrink by 2 percent in March from the previous month, pushing the annual rate of decline to a new record, the EU's statistics office said Wednesday. The drop was far bigger than expected.

May 6th, 2009 Euro-zone retail sales slide by record 4.2 pctBRUSSELS — Retail trade in the 16 nations that use the euro slid by a record 4.2 percent in March from a year ago, the EU statistics agency said Wednesday, as recession-hit shoppers cut back over worries on rising unemployment. The European Union said some 8.5 million jobs will disappear this year and next year as the economies of both the euro area and the 27-nation European Union shrink by 4 percent.

May 4th, 2009 Euro-zone official warns of jobless crisisBRUSSELS — The euro-zone's top economy official said Monday that Europe was "heading toward a social crisis" as unemployment rates rocket to a postwar record. The European Commission predicted earlier that the jobless rate in the 16 nations that use the euro would climb to 9.9 percent this year and 11.5 percent next year — the highest since the Second World War.

May 4th, 2009 EU revises forecast; predicts deep, wide recessionBRUSSELS — Deepening the economic gloom in Europe, the European Union admitted Monday that its previous forecasts were way off the mark. It now predicts "a deep and widespread recession" across the continent and says unemployment among the 16 nations that use the euro will rise to a postwar record of 11.5 percent in 2010.

May 4th, 2009 EU says euro area to shrink by 4 percent this yearBRUSSELS — Europe is suffering "a deep and widespread recession," the EU said Monday, estimating that unemployment will rise sharply over the next two years and that EU economies will shrink twice as much as it predicted only a few months ago. The European Commission said both the 27-nation EU and the 16 countries that use the euro currency will shrink by 4 percent this year, more than double its January estimates, when it forecast a 1.8 percent contraction for the EU and a 1.9 percent decline for the euro-zone area.

May 4th, 2009 EU says Europe faces deep and widespread recessionBRUSSELS — The European Union says Europe faces a "deep and widespread recession" and that unemployment will rise sharply over the coming two years. It says both the 27-nation EU and the 16 countries that use the euro currency will shrink 4 percent this year, way more than its previous forecasts.

April 23rd, 2009 Euro nearly unchanged against dollar at $1.3024FRANKFURT — The euro was nearly flat against the dollar Thursday despite news that Germany's economy, Europe's largest, was expected to shrink more than 5 percent this year. The 16-nation euro bought $1.3024 in European morning trading, slightly up from the $1.3017 late Wednesday in New York.