Eurozone growth forecast falls due to COVID-19 outbreak

ANKARA

The head of the European Central Bank (ECB) announced on Thursday that euro area GDP growth is projected to be 0.8% this year and 1.3% in 2021, down from estimates before the global coronavirus outbreak.

“The projections foresee very muted growth in the first half of 2020, followed by an improvement in the second half of the year,” ECB President Christine Lagarde said at a press conference.

The downgraded forecast was due to the potential economic impact of the coronavirus outbreak, she added.

“The disruption of supply chains is impeding production plans in the manufacturing sector, while necessary containment measures against further

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