Europe exits recession

A report on Wednesday showed that the eurozone economy grew 0.3 percent in the second quarter, bringing its recession to an end.

The eurozone economy had contracted 0.3 percent in the first quarter, its sixth consecutive quarterly contraction.

Germany and France, the euro area’s two largest economies, led the region out of recession, growing by 0.7 percent and 0.5 percent respectively. However, Italy and Spain remained in recession.

Elsewhere in Europe, the UK saw its unemployment rate hold steady at 7.8 percent in June.

Other data though indicated improvement in the labour market.

The number of people claiming jobless benefit fell by 29,200 last month, its ninth consecutive decline and bringing the count to the lowest in more than four years. It follows a drop of 29,400 in June, the largest monthly drop since May 2010.

Average weekly earnings growth accelerated to 2.1 percent in the three months through June compared with a year earlier, the fastest growth since late 2011.