GDP to Drop Over 8% in 2020-Gualtieri

Italian Economy Minister Roberto Gualtieri said that the country’s GDP will shrink by slightly more than 8%, stressing that production in Q3 will record a “strong recovery.”

The Office for National Statistics said last week that the economy witnessed a record contraction of 12.8% in Q2 compared to the previous quarter, following a 5.5% drop in Q1.

And in April, the government expected full-year gross domestic product to fall 8%. Later, the Central Bank of Italy expected a contraction of 9.5% and the International Monetary Fund forecast a contraction of 12.8%.

“When we said the number 8%, we did not know how long the isolation measures will continue. The gross domestic product will drop by more than 8%, but not by much,” the minister told a parliamentary committee.