Europe Lowers Growth Forecast for 2012

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　　The new figures predict economic growth across the European Union of only 0.6 percent next year - and just 0.5 percent in the 17-nation eurozone. That is substantially less than the 1.8 percent growth predictions earlier this year for the euro currency area.

　　European Economic and Monetary² Affairs Commissioner³ Olli Rehn delivered a sober assessment⁴ of the region's problems at a press conference in Brussels.

　　"GDP is now forecast to stagnate⁵ around the turn of this year, with some member states, in fact, experiencing a contraction," said Rehn.

　　Rehn called on five EU members - Belgium, Cyprus, Hungary, Malta and Poland - to cut their budgets or risk facing sanctions. He also summed up international worries about the ailing⁶ region.

　　"Concern about the sovereign debt crisis in several euro-area member states, together with the weakening global economic conditions, have led to a sharp fall in confidence since April this year," said Rehn.

　　Rehn is only the latest official sounding a warning. International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde is urging "clarity" from Italy and Greece, which face political as well as economic turmoil⁷. And noting the sluggish⁸ growth and high unemployment in the United States, she is warning of a "lost decade" ahead for the world economy.

　　"Our sense is that if we do not act boldly and if we do not act together, the economy around the world runs the risk of a downward spiral of uncertainty⁹, financial instability and a potential collapse¹⁰ of global demand," said Lagarde.

　　A Reuters report said officials from Germany and France have discussed a fundamental overhaul¹¹ of the European Union, to create a smaller, more integrated eurozone group compared to the rest of the 27-member EU. Officially, however, both France and Germany say it is essential the eurozone remains¹² intact.

　　Additionally, analyst¹³ Philippe Moreau Defarges, of the Paris-based French Institute of International Relations, said creating these two European systems would be problematic in practice.

　　"It's very difficult because the juridical issue… in English you say 'the devil is in the details' - I would say what is important is in the details. It means that, of course, you can imagine a very ambitious scheme, very ambitious modification¹⁴ on the paper, but when you want to implement¹⁵ that… it's much more difficult," said Defarges.

　　What is certain is that the eurozone crisis is likely to dominate the news here for the months to come, with pressure growing for European leaders to come up with a comprehensive and sustainable solution.

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