Activity in the euro zone has slowed compared to 2022 but will be “much better” this year than initially feared, despite inflation and the energy crisis, European Central Bank President Christine said on Thursday. Lagarde.
The labor markets, in Europe in particular, “have never been so dynamic” with the number of unemployed “at a minimum compared to what we have had in the last 20 years,” stressed the French banker. Christine Lagarde referred in particular to Germany, the largest economy in Europe, which should come out of recession in 2023, despite the still tense situation due to the energy crisis, according to statements by Chancellor Olaf Scholz during an interview on Tuesday at Bloomberg. Hit by inflation, which is raising production costs in industry, the engine of its economy, Germany seems to be resisting better than expected thanks to robust consumption and substantial public aid.
Inflation is still the black spot
The European Commission, for its part, forecasts a contraction in the gross domestic product (GDP) of both the euro area and the EU in the last quarter of 2022 and during the first three months of 2023, before a rebound in the rest of the year. year . Christine Lagarde, at the same time, highlighted inflation data that remains “too high”, even if price increases have slowed after peaking at more than 10% in October.
The ECB has raised its interest rates by 2.5 percentage points since July, an unprecedented rapid rise, and plans to maintain this restrictive course in the coming months in an attempt to reduce inflation sustainably.
Source: BFM TV
