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Investing.com - The eurozone economy grew slightly faster than expected in the third quarter, but growth remains limited ahead of the latest rate-setting meeting by the European Central Bank.
The 20 nations sharing the euro currency saw their economy expand by 0.2% in the third quarter, beating expectations for growth of just 0.1%, Eurostat data showed.
On an annual basis, the eurozone grew by 1.3% in the third quarter, a slowing from 1.5% growth the prior quarter, but ahead of the 1.2% growth expected.
The eurozone has barely grown over the past few years as businesses held back investment as they coped with high inflation and trade uncertainty.
The ECB cut rates by a combined two percentage points in the year to June to help boost growth, but policymakers are all but certain to leave interest rates unchanged for a third meeting in a row later Thursday.
Inflation has fallen back largely to target, and eurozone business activity unexpectedly grew at a faster pace in October as companies received new orders at the quickest rate in 2-1/2 years, suggesting the bloc’s economy gained momentum at the start of the final quarter, a survey showed on Friday.
Data released earlier in the session also showed that France’s economy, the second-largest in the euro zone, grew 0.5% in the third quarter, faster than the 0.2% forecast.
The national statistics office INSEE said in a preliminary GDP report for the period that exports jumped 2.2% in the third quarter from the previous quarter while imports fell 0.4%, which meant foreign trade boosted growth substantially.