Economics

Two-Speed Europe Sees Germany Thriving as Rest of Region Suffers

  • Euro-area PMI indicates only marginal expansion in September
  • Chances of a renewed downturn ‘have clearly risen’: IHS Markit
Photographer: Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg
Lock
This article is for subscribers only.

Germany was the only euro-area country to record solid economic growth in September, with much of the rest of the region suffering amid weakness in services.

While a global trade pickup is helping industry recover from the coronavirus pandemic, benefiting export-oriented Germany, many countries in the region’s south are more heavily reliant on tourism and hospitality. Those sectors remain badly affected by the crisis, especially with infections rising again.