Brussels today publishes economic forecasts marked by a context of uncertainty

The European Commission will publish its winter economic forecasts this Thursday, following two downward revisions to its gross domestic product (GDP) forecast in a context of uncertainty given the Red Sea conflict and farmer protests.

As several blockages take place in the Red Sea, where Yemen’s Houthi militants are attacking merchant shipping vessels in retaliation for Israel’s war in the Gaza Strip, the community leader releases the latest gross domestic product (GDP) and inflation forecasts for the eurozone and the European Union (EU) and must maintain cautious trend.

These forecasts, which will be released at a press conference starting at 11am (local time, minus one in Lisbon), come at a time of concern about rising prices in the single currency area and in the Union due to these attacks in Krasnoye sea, which caused disruptions in maritime transport and increased costs on trade routes between Asia and Europe.

In addition to the impact on supply chains, the conflict in the Middle East between Israel and the Islamist movement Hamas could also affect energy prices, especially oil, which in turn would also affect the community’s GDP.

In addition, there are currently blockades across Europe – in countries such as Portugal, Spain, Italy, Romania, Poland, Greece, Germany and the Netherlands – caused by protests by EU farmers, a context that could also affect economic growth. community economy.

In its latest autumn economic forecasts, published last November, the European Commission revised down for the second time in a row its forecast for eurozone economic growth to 1.2% in 2024 due to loss of dynamism and high living costs.

In 2023, according to the latest data, the GDP of the eurozone and the EU grew by 0.5%, Eurostat reported this Thursday.