Italy has slipped into a recession for the first time in 11 years, the government reported after studying the effects of the conflict in Iraq, which hurt consumer confidence, and a sharp rise in the euro, which sapped strength from the Italian economy.
Preliminary data from the nation's statistics bureau, Istat, showed that Italy's gross domestic product (GDP) contracted 0.1% in the period from April to June, the same decline as in the first quarter. A recession is defined as two consecutive quarterly declines in GDP.
Together, Italy, Germany and France make up more than half of the GDP among the 12 nations that share the euro.
Source: The New York Times
