Slowdown in Italian growth in Q2 'surprising' - Gentiloni

(ANSA) - ROME, SEP 11 - Italy showed a "surprising" slowdown in GDP growth in the second quarter of 2023, European Commissioner for Economic Affairs Paolo Gentiloni said on Monday.
    "In Italy, growth in the second quarter surprised on the downside with a contraction of 0. 4%, driven by a drop in domestic demand," said Gentiloni during the presentation of the European Union's Summer 2023 Economic Forecast in Brussels.
    "Although a slight rebound is expected in the second half of this year and next, annual growth projections have been revised downward since spring," he continued.
    According to the revised EU forecast, Italian GDP is expected to grow by 0.9% in 2023, down from the previous forecast of 1.2%, and by 08.% in 2024, down from 1.1%.
    Gentiloni said that in the European economy "uncertainty remains exceptionally high, largely due to Russia's ongoing war of aggression against Ukraine".
    "The tightening of monetary policy could lead to stronger negative effects on economic activity than expected, but it could also trigger a faster drop in inflation, which would accelerate the recovery of real incomes," he added. (ANSA).