Euro zone economy sees strong growth at last year’s end

The euro zone economy grew by 0.6 per cent in the final quarter of last year, European statistics agency Eurostat confirmed on Wednesday, ensuring that the single currency bloc expanded at its fastest rate in more than decade last year.

Eurostat confirmed its earlier estimate that the economy of the 19 countries sharing the euro zone grew by 0.6 per cent month-on-month and by 2.7 per cent year-on-year.

That followed expansion of 0.7 per cent and 2.7 per cent respectively in the third quarter, according to Reuters.

Overall in 2017, euro zone GDP rose 2.3 per cent, Eurostat said, the fastest rate of growth since a 3.0 per cent rise in 2007. It had previously estimated 2017 growth at 2.5 per cent. It said its revision was due to the removal of calendar day adjustments.

The fourth-quarter expansion was on a par with that of the United States quarter-on-quarter and above the US year-on-year growth rate of 2.5 per cent.