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/
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova earlier said that the treaty provides for various forms of bilateral cooperation.
The comprehensive strategic partnership agreement between Russia and Iran has entered into force, Iranian Ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali told Sputnik.
"It is already binding," Jalali said when asked about the date of entry into force of the agreement, as well as whether Iran had notified Russia of the completion of internal procedures.
He recalled that the treaty was ratified by both chambers of the Russian parliament, and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed it. At the same time, the document was ratified by the Iranian parliament, approved by the Guardian Council, and the president issued it as a law.
"Therefore, in both countries it currently has the form of a law and, naturally, has entered into force," Jalali said.
On January 17, Putin and his Iranian counterpart, Masoud Pezeshkian, met in Moscow to sign the Comprehensive Strategic ...
Defying the United States threats, ministers from more than 30 nations have packed Bogotá’s San Carlos Palace to charge the Israeli regime with genocide over its October 2023-present brutal military assault against the Gaza Strip.
The dramatic display of international solidarity saw dozens of high-ranking officials from across the globe convene inside the stately palace on Tuesday, determined to hold the regime accountable for, what they unequivocally called, a “war of genocide.”
The two-day emergency summit, organized under the auspices of The Hague Group -- a coalition co-chaired by Colombia and South Africa -- had representatives, ranging from such countries as Algeria and Brazil to Pakistan and Spain, in attendance.
The participants described the drive as a coordinated effort to stop the Israeli atrocities.
Behind closed doors, ministers and envoys, meanwhile, engaged in intensive sessions aimed at drafting collective measures to pressure the regime -- steps expected to be unveiled by ...