The euro area’s economy has now registered two consecutive quarters of contraction
The Eurozone's economy contracted in the first quarter of 2023, the statistics agency Eurostat revealed on Thursday. This marks the second consecutive quarter of contraction, thus meeting the technical definition of a recession.
The announcement came following a downward revision of growth in the 20 countries that use the euro as their currency for the last quarter of 2022 and first quarter of this year.
Gross domestic product (GDP) in the Eurozone shrank by 0.1% between January and March, compared to the fourth quarter of 2022, Eurostat said in a statement.
The agency attributed the downturn to a slump in both government and household spending and to revised data from Germany, which showed that the Eurozone’s largest economy slid into a recession at the beginning of the year.
Household consumption in the euro area dropped by 0.3% in the first quarter, highlighting the pressures that consumers are facing amid soaring prices, the report said.
“We expect growth to resume from 2Q23, but stay subdued through 2023, as headwinds from tighter financing conditions and faltering global demand keep a lid on activity,” Bloomberg’s Maeva Cousin and David Powell noted. .....more below
https://www.rt.com/business/577713-eurozone-enters-recession/
The prices of some life-saving medicines have soared to levels that are unaffordable for ordinary people in Venezuela as the United States has ramped up military presence in the Caribbean off Venezuela's coast, alongside escalating sanctions, blockades and military threats against the oil-rich South American nation since late August.
https://www.presstv.ir/default/Embeded/761400
At a northeastern suburb in the capital city Caracas, locals can still purchase most of the commonly used medicines at a major supermarket, where some antibiotics have been sold out, and some first-aid medicines and supplies have become too costly for ordinary residents.
"I'm here mainly to buy antibiotics. I have problems with my lungs. But I can't get all I want, such as vancomycin," said a resident named Alfonso.
"Recent tensions have affected the supplies and prices of drugs. The prices of cancer drugs, insulin drugs and albumin are very high, and most patients here cannot afford them," said Giovanna Gonzalez a ...
Russian President Vladimir Putin says Moscow is prepared to use military force to achieve the goals of its special military operation if Ukraine continues to delay peace talks.
During an inspection of a Russian armed forces command post on Saturday, Putin stressed that Moscow will not allow Kiev’s obstruction to prevent progress.
“If the Kiev authorities do not want to resolve the matter peacefully, we will accomplish all the tasks before us in the course of the special military operation by military means,” he said.
The Russian leader noted that the Ukrainian authorities are not moving toward a peaceful resolution, adding, “We see that even today, unfortunately, the leaders of the Kiev regime are in no hurry to resolve this conflict peacefully. I spoke about this a year ago in a speech at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.”
Putin also received reports from Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov and commanders of Russia’s “Centre” and “East” military groups.
Meanwhile, ...
