Countries Recession Reports

Britain exits recession: how we compare with rival economies, countries recession reports!

Britain

Limped out of recession. The country has been hit particularly hard by the collapse of the banking system, because its economy was overly reliant on a mix of financial services and the housing market. It entered into a recession in the second quarter of 2008 and only emerged with 0.1pc growth in the final three months of 2009.

France

Out of recession. Entered at the same time as Britain and was expected to be hit hard by its lack of flexible workforce. In fact, it has survived surprisingly well, with its manufacturing base helping it come out of recession in the second quarter of last year. The Government expects the economy to notch growth of 0.4pc this quarter and 0.3pc next.

Germany

Out of recession. It too was expected to be poleaxed by the global recession, because its economy had been struggling for a while and it is one of the world’s biggest exporters. But it emerged from recession in the third quarter of 2009, though its statistics offices has warned that the recovery probably stagnated in the final three months of the year.

Japan

Out of recession. Like Germany, it was forecast to be hamstrung by its reliance on exports and electronics and car manufacturing. Intriguingly, these factors have played in its favour and the country after a deep slump at the end of last year and the start of this year, has recovered. The Government is forecasting expansion of 1.4pc in the next financial year.

Spain

Still in recession. If you thought Britain had it tough, spare a thought for Spain, which has found itself in a dire state thanks to a spectacular bursting of its property bubble. At 19.4pc, Spain has the highest unemployment in the eurozone and house prices are still falling. Though it entered its recession later than most countries, in the third quarter of last year, it is expected to fare badly well into next year.

USA

Out of recession, though not yet officially confirmed. After four quarters of contraction, the world’s largest economy expanded at an annual pace of 2.2pc in the third quarter of 2009. But with unemployment running above 10pc, the outlook for the recovery remains uncertain.

China

Never in recession and last quarter racked up its fastest growth since 2007. The economy enjoyed growth of 10.7pc in the final three months of 2009 compared with a year earlier. For the whlole of last year, gross domestic product grew by 8.7pc, beating the target set down by Premier Wen Jiabao.