This marks the third time that France has been in recession since 2008, when a banking crisis pushed the global economy into its deepest contraction since World War II.
Guillaume Cairou, CEO of the consultancy Didaxis and president of France’s Club of Entrepreneurs, said the news that the country is in recession merely confirms the difficulties its businesses have long experienced.
“The situation of companies on the ground is grave and more serious today than in 2008,” Cairou said in a written statement.
Whatever problems France is experiencing at the moment, they pale in comparison with the continuing contractions in countries that have either been bailed out or are trying to avoid a financial rescue.
Greece
The country has faced the most acute economic difficulties and it remains mired in a six-year recession that is commonly being referred to as a depression. The Greek economy has been ravaged by a series of austerity measures, such as wage and pension cuts and tax rises, demanded by international creditors in order to return the country’s public finances to health.
In the first quarter, the Greek economy was 5.3 percent smaller than it was the year before â quarterly figures are not provided. Though that is an improvement compared to the past two quarters â in the third quarter of 2012, the annual rate of contraction stood at 6.7 percent â the country’s creditors and the Greek government have recently voiced hopes that the recent calmer financial backdrop may herald a return to growth.
Cyprus
Much worse is projected for Cyprus, which recently accepted a bailout following a damaging crisis that saw its banks close for nearly a couple of weeks. Many economists fear that the small eastern Mediterranean island nation will see its output shrink at Greek-style levels over the coming couple of years as its economy readjusts. Capital controls remain in place, two months after the crisis that gripped the country. In the first quarter, the island’s economy shrank by a quarterly rate of 1.3 percent.
Portugal
Portugal, which has also been bailed out, remains in recession, though the quarterly decline of 0.3 percent in the first three months of the year is substantially lower than the previous quarter’s 1.8 percent drop.
Spain, Italy, Ireland
Spain, which has sought help for its banks, remains in recession, as is Italy, which has also embarked on the austerity path. Both countries’ economies shrank by a quarterly rate of 0.5 percent in the first quarter.
Quarterly figures for Ireland, which hopes to exit its bailout program this year, have yet to be released.
The article Eurozone Recession Extends Into Sixth Quarter originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Associated Press.
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