Austria: Q1 growth marks a promising start to the year - ING

Inga Burk, Economist at ING, explains that after ending 2016 on a solid footing, the Austrian economy performed even better in the first quarter of this year as the flash estimate for 1Q GDP growth came in at 0.6% QoQ from 0.5% QoQ in 4Q16, preliminary figures from the Austrian Institute of Economic Research show.

Key Quotes

“The more volatile Eurostat measure confirmed the positive picture for first quarter growth, coming in at 0.5% QoQ.”

“Domestic demand remained the most important growth driver in the first quarter, although other sectors supported the upturn as well. The broadening of the Eurozone recovery is positively affecting exports, which had been subdued at the end of last year. Employment dynamics have been positive, and the high number of vacancies suggests that these positive dynamics will continue in the months to come. It is no wonder that economic sentiment surged to its highest level since April 2011.”

“Looking ahead, the Austrian economy should remain on a robust growth path in the first half of the year. While the Austrian economy had been one of the Eurozone’s growth laggards early last year, the latest data shows that the economy has successfully caught up with the group of fast-growers.”