According to figures published by the Eurozone, Eurozone economies are growing half as fast as Britain's European Union's own statistics department – with Germany and France doing even worse.
And a Britain-based economist has warned countries in the 19-member monetary union to brace for a “muted” recovery – unlike Britain, which emerged from recession this week.
Eurostat data shows that GDP in the region grew by 0.3 percent in the first quarter of 2024 – half the UK figure (0.6 percent).
Furthermore Ccapital economyAndrew Kenningham warned Brussels that the figures did not provide a true reflection of the situation.
He said: “The increase in the first quarter was partly due to a weather-related rebound in construction activity, which is unlikely to be repeated.”
Consequently, the recovery would be “quite muted,” Kennington explained.
Perhaps most strikingly, the bloc's two major economies – France and Germany, led by Emmanuel Macron and Olaf Scholz respectively – recorded the slowest growth, at just 0.2 percent.
Germany has therefore not been able to regain the ground it lost in the last quarter of last year, when the economy shrank by 0.5 percent.
Carsten Brzeski, economist at INGsaid: “Despite a generally strong labor market, there is collective concern about a possible loss of prosperity and declining competitiveness in Germany.”
He added: “German employment may be at record levels, but the number of people in part-time jobs has also risen to historic highs recently.”
At the end of 2019, 45 million Germans were employed, including 11 million in part-time jobs, Mr. Brzeski noted.
Four years later, after the pandemic, total employment stood at 46 million, but the number of people working in part-time jobs had increased to almost 12 million, he added.
He said: “As a result, the total number of hours worked has fallen to 61.8 billion in 2023, compared to 62.3 billion in 2019.”
Prime Minister spoke to Sky News earlier this week after the release of the better-than-expected ONS figures Rishi Sunak she called evidence that the British economy had “turned a corner” eight years later. Brexit.
He added: 'I'm pleased that, while there is still more work to be done, today's figures show that the economy now has real momentum, and I am confident that over time people will reap the benefits of that will start to feel.
'We have now had several months where wages have risen, energy bills have fallen, mortgage rates have been reduced and taxes are being reduced… I'm happy with the progress we're making.
“I am confident that the economy is getting healthier every week.”