Allez France! Almost single-handed, French consumers, who in the third quarter of this year spent an annualised 5% more than in the previous three months, kept the euro area's economy afloat. Among the three largest economies, which account for 70% of euro-area GDP, only France looked healthy, growing by 0.5%. Italy managed just 0.2%; Germany's economy, poorly for a year, actually shrank. As a whole, the euro area grew by a mere 0.1% (see chart).
展开▼
