Ireland, Lithuania and Sweden Pull Growth in the EU, Belgium and Austria Stagnate
Preliminary Eurostat data show that euro area GDP grew by 0.4% in Q2 2026, but growth is increasingly uneven among member states.
The gross domestic product of the euro area in the second quarter of 2026 surpassed the expected growth rate, but behind the positive aggregate lies an increasingly significant dispersion among member states.
Eurostat's preliminary estimate shows that GDP in the euro area grew by 0.4% compared with the previous quarter, after a quarter without growth in the first quarter; economists had on average forecast an increase of 0.2%. At the European Union level, growth accelerated to 0.5% compared with 0.1% previously, and annual growth stands at 1.0% in the euro area and 1.2% in the whole EU.
Ireland pushes the statistics up, Belgium and Austria did not move
Of the countries that have already published data, Ireland registered the largest quarterly increase — GDP grew by 3.9%. Lithuania recorded growth of 1.7%, and Sweden 1.4%. According to calculations by Pantheon Macroeconomics, only the recovery in Ireland contributed 0.1 percentage point to overall euro area growth.
Southern Europe showed resilience: Portugal grew by 0.8% and Spain by 0.7%, driven by demand, exports, government support and renewable energy. At the opposite end, Belgium and Austria reported stagnation with no growth in the quarter.
The largest economies reported a slower pace. Germany grew by 0.2% in the second quarter (compared with 0.4% in the first), but that was still above market expectations of 0.1%. France returned to growth of 0.2%, while Italy grew by 0.2%. The risk of inflation re-accelerating in Germany and Spain could force the European Central Bank to reassess its interest-rate policies.
Claus Vistesen, chief economist for the euro area at Pantheon Macroeconomics, assessed that the data show "a picture of resilience in the first half of the year", supported by upward revisions to previous quarters. "Net exports were the main driver of GDP growth in the second quarter, while consumption slowed and investment fell," Vistesen said. Reports also note that the number of unemployed in Germany once again exceeded three million.
Separately, the European Union allocated 10 billion euros for the construction of gigafactories for artificial intelligence, as part of efforts to strengthen industrial capacity in the context of uneven economic growth.
Photo: MIA
