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April 30, 2021EU AND EURO AREA GDP, Q1 2021 [PRELIMINARY FLASH] 
In the preliminary flash estimate, Eurostat reports that real GDP growth declined 1.5% (seasonally adjusted annualized rate) in the European Union and 2.5% in the Euro Area in the first quarter of 2021. In the fourth quarter of 2020, activity was down 1.9% in the EU27 and 2.7% in the EA19 at annualized rates.
COVID-19 containment measures weighed on first quarter growth following a decline in the fourth quarter of 2020. Compared with the same quarter of the previous year, seasonally adjusted real GDP was down 1.8% in the Euro Area and 1.7% in the EU27 in Q1 2021. In the previous quarter, year-over-year declines of 4.9% for the Euro Area and 4.6% for the EU27 were reported.
A seasonally adjusted annualized rate shows what the percent change would be if the quarterly rate was compounded for four quarters. Reporting annualized rates facilitates comparability between annual and quarterly growth but can exaggerate change when series are volatile. The COVID-19 shocks do not indicate contraction of EU GDP by 1.5% in Q1. It would take four quarters of compounded growth at the same pace as reported in Q1 to decrease EU GDP by 1.5%. Real GDP in Q1 decreased 0.4% in the EU27 and 0.6% in the EA19 compared to the previous quarter.
Source: Eurostat
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