- Howard Archer from IHS Economics
A December decline in Euro zone industrial production dragged economic growth in the currency bloc down, adding to arguments for further monetary easing. According to Eurostat, gross domestic product in the 19 countries sharing the Euro climbed 0.3% quarter-on-quarter in the last three months of last year, unchanged from the July-September period and in line economists' expectations. Measured on an annual basis, the Euro zone economy grew 1.5%. In the first two quarters of 2015, the quarterly growth rates were 0.5% and 0.4% respectively. In December the European Central Bank slightly revised its GDP growth forecasts to 1.5% in 2015, up 0.1% from September's forecast. The central bank predicted the Euro zone's economy to expand by 1.7% in 2016, unchanged from the previous outlook, while in 2017 growth is expected to book 1.9%, up from 1.8% seen previously.
Meanwhile, the Euro zone's largest economy accelerated its growth pace at the end of 2015, as strong domestic economic conditions largely offset the deteriorating economic environment overseas. Fourth quarter German GDP rose 0.3% compared to the previous quarter. For the whole of 2015 German GDP rose 1.7%. Also, the cost of living in Germany rose 0.5% in January compared to the same period a year ago
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