By DPA,
Brussels: The European Union’s economy shrank by 4.1 percent in 2009, with the eurozone economy shrinking by four percent, the EU’s statistical arm reported in a first flash estimate Friday.
Eurostat reported that gross domestic product (GDP) in the eurozone and the EU as a whole grew by a weaker-than-expected 0.1 percent in the last three months of the year, in a disturbing sign of ongoing economic fragility.
Analysts had predicted that the eurozone would record GDP growth of 0.4 percent quarter-on-quarter, the same rate as recorded in the third quarter of the year.
The news of the weaker-than-expected growth is likely to unsettle markets already concerned by Greece’s ongoing financial problems, amidst speculation that other euro members, such as Spain and Portugal, might soon face debt problems of their own.