After growth beat expectations, are we too pessimistic about the Eurozone’s chances? Christian Schulz is senior economist at Berenberg, says Yes. Remember early October? We’d just learned that German industrial output, factory orders and exports had plummeted in August by the biggest margins since Lehman. Alarm bells rang from Frankfurt to Washington. The reality is less spectacular: Germany entered an economic rough patch. Russia’s aggression against Ukraine [...]
As confidence rises in October, has economic malaise in the Eurozone been exaggerated? Christian Schulz, senior economist at Berenberg, says Yes. Germany is experiencing a rough patch. Yet it’s not the Eurozone dragging down Germany. Spain, Portugal and Ireland have solid recoveries, which have broadened from exports to investment. Unemployment is falling, helped by labour market reforms at the height of the crisis. Even Greece is showing tentative [...]