GDP up by 0.6%, employment up by 0.2% in euro area in Q1: Eurostat

BRUSSELS, 6th June, 2025 (WAM) – In the first quarter of 2025, seasonally adjusted GDP increased by 0.6% both in the euro area and in the EU, compared with the previous quarter, according to an estimate published by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. In the fourth quarter of 2024, GDP had grown by 0.3% in the euro area and 0.4% in the EU.

Compared with the same quarter of the previous year, seasonally adjusted GDP increased by 1.5% in the euro area and by 1.6% in the EU in the first quarter of 2025, after +1.2% in the euro area and +1.4% in the EU in the previous quarter.

Ireland (+9.7%) recorded the highest increase of GDP compared to the previous quarter, followed by Malta (+2.1%) and Cyprus (+1.3%). The highest decreases were observed in Luxembourg (-1.0%), Slovenia (-0.8%), Denmark and Portugal (both -0.5%).

The number of employed persons increased by 0.2% in the euro area and remained stable in the EU in the first quarter of 2025, compared with the previous quarter. In the fourth quarter of 2024, employment had increased by 0.1% in the euro area and 0.2% in the EU.

Compared with the same quarter of the previous year, employment increased by 0.7% in the euro area and by 0.4% in the EU in the first quarter of 2025, after +0.8% in the euro area and +0.6% in the EU in the fourth quarter of 2024.

In the first quarter of 2025, Croatia (+1.0%) and Spain (+0.8%) recorded the highest growth of employment in persons compared with the previous quarter. The highest declines of employment were recorded in Romania (-2.1%), Estonia (-0.8%), Lithuania and Poland (both -0.6%).

Based on seasonally adjusted figures, Eurostat estimates that in the first quarter of 2025, 219.8 million people were employed in the EU, of which 171.6 million were in the euro area.