Italian economy shrinks 0.8% in Q1
2012-06-11 14:44:53
Italy's economy shrank by 0.8 percent in the first quarter, the official data agency Istat said on Monday, confirming an earlier estimate that showed the country's recession deepening.
Istat also revised down to 1.4 percent the contraction on a 12-month comparison compared to an earlier estimate of 1.3 percent.
Italy's economy has been shrinking since the third quarter of 2011.
The main reasons for the first-quarter contraction were a 0.6-percent fall in consumption from the previous quarter and a 3.6-percent drop in investment.
Imports also fell 3.6 percent and exports went down 0.6 percent, Istat said.
The economy has been hit by a series of draconian austerity plans and a rise in unemployment to over 10 percent.
Istat has forecast the economy will continue to shrink in the second quarter before recovering in the second half of the year.
The government is forecasting an overall contraction of 1.2 percent this year, but the International Monetary Fund predicts it will shrink 1.9 percent.