According to the statistical agency Eurostat, the GDP of the EU countries in the II quarter fell by 14.4% in annual terms. On a quarterly basis, the indicator decreased by 11.9%. In the first three months of the year, the EU economy contracted by 3.6%. Figures like these signal that the European economy has entered a recession. Earlier in July, the European Commission presented its forecast for changes in Europe's GDP: experts expected the economy to decline by 8.3%. At the same time, the economies of 19 eurozone countries contracted by 12.1% in the second quarter and by 15% – in annual terms. Analysts had expected a decline of 11.2% and 13.9%, respectively. The fall in all indicators has become the sharpest and strongest since 1995 – since the beginning of statistics.
