The Dutch [economy][1] contracted at the fastest pace since 2009 mainly due to a record fall in household consumption amid coronavirus, or Covid-19, pandemic, data from the Central Bureau of Statistics showed Friday.
Gross domestic product fell 1.7 percent sequentially in the first quarter, this was the biggest decline since the first quarter of 2009, when it was down 3.6 percent.
Nonetheless, the 1.7 percent fall in the first quarter was much smaller than the economists’ forecast of -3 percent. In the fourth quarter of 2019, GDP was up 0.4 percent.
The fall in GDP suggested that the economic impact of the [coronavirus][2] was mild, at least in international comparison, Marcel Klok, an ING economist said.
“The “intelligent lockdown” as it has been dubbed by PM Rutte has paid off economically thus far, although the second quarter is likely to be much worse,” Klok added.
The expenditure-side showed that household consumption fell 2.7 percent, marking the largest decrease since the series began in 1987. Government spending dropped 1.4 percent.
Investment slid 1.1 percent. At the same time, exports and imports fell 3 percent and 3.5 percent, respectively.
The statistical office said the global outbreak of coronavirus and related measures to contain its spread have caused an unprecedented decline in economic activity.
On a yearly basis, GDP was down 0.5 percent versus a 1.6 percent rise in the fourth quarter of 2019. This was the first contraction since the second quarter of 2013.
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