Italy in recession amid sluggish eurozone

2019-01-31 21:05:58

Italy's economy tipped into recession at the end of last year, according to latest figures. In the final three months of 2018, the economy shrank by 0.2%, following a 0.1% decline in the third quarter, the Istat statistics office said. Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said the contraction was likely to continue into 2019. Meanwhile, figures from the EU showed economic growth in the 19-country eurozone still languishing. Growth in the euro area remained at 0.2% in the final quarter of 2018, the same as the previous quarter and in line with analysts' expectations. The figures, issued by the Eurostat agency, showed that in the 28-nation EU as a whole, fourth-quarter growth was 0.3%. AFP.