Euro zone saw winter recession, more challenges ahead

The euro zone economy fell into a technical recession in the first three months of 2023, data from statistics agency Eurostat showed on Thursday as signs emerge that central bank rate hikes will crimp the region’s future growth prospects.

“Domestic demand is not in a good place,” Oxford Economics’ analysts said in a note, adding first-quarter public spending saw the largest contraction on record except for during the first wave of coronavirus lockdowns in 2020