GDP and employment both up by 0.1% in the euro area

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In the EU, GDP up by 0.2% and employment up by 0.1%

GDP growth in the euro area and EU

In the first quarter of 2026, seasonally adjusted GDP increased by 0.1% in the euro area and by 0.2% in the EU, compared with the previous quarter, according to a flash estimate published by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. In the fourth quarter of 2025, GDP had increased by 0.2% in both areas.

GDP growth rates over the previous quarter

Compared with the same quarter of the previous year, seasonally adjusted GDP increased by 0.8% in the euro area and by 1.0% in the EU in the first quarter of 2026, after +1.3% in the euro area and +1.4% in the EU in the previous quarter.

GDP growth rates over the same quarter of the previous year

During the first quarter of 2026, GDP in the United States increased by 0.5% compared to the previous quarter (after +0.1% in the fourth quarter of 2025). Compared with the same quarter of the previous year, GDP increased by 2.7% (after +2.0% in the previous quarter).

Employment growth in the euro area and EU

The number of employed persons increased by 0.1% in both the euro area and the EU in the first quarter of 2026, compared with the previous quarter. In the fourth quarter of 2025, employment had increased by 0.2% in both areas.

Growth of employment in persons over the previous quarter

Compared with the same quarter of the previous year, employment increased by 0.5% in the euro area and by 0.6% in the EU in the first quarter of 2026, after +0.7% in the euro area and +0.6% in the EU in the fourth quarter of 2025.

Growth of employment in persons over the same quarter of the previous year

These data provide a picture of labour input consistent with the output and income measures of national accounts.

Tables

Growth rates of employment in persons
	Percentage change compared with the previous quarter (based on seasonally adjusted data)				Percentage change compared with the same quarter of the previous year (based on unadjusted data)
	2025Q2	2025Q3	2025Q4	2026Q1	2025Q2	2025Q3	2025Q4	2026Q1
Euro area 21	0.1	0.2	0.2	0.1	0.8	0.7	0.7	0.5
Euro area 20	0.1	0.2	0.2	0.1	0.7	0.6	0.7	0.5
EU	0.1	0.1	0.2	0.1	0.5	0.5	0.6	0.6
Source datasets: tec00108 (quarterly change), teina305 (annual change) and tec00109 (levels)

Growth rates of GDP in volume (based on seasonally adjusted* data)
	Percentage change compared with the previous quarter				Percentage change compared with the same quarter of the previous year
	2025Q2	2025Q3	2025Q4	2026Q1	2025Q2	2025Q3	2025Q4	2026Q1
Euro area 21	0.1	0.3	0.2	0.1	1.6	1.4	1.3	0.8
Euro area 20	0.1	0.3	0.2	0.1	1.6	1.4	1.2	0.8
EU	0.3	0.4	0.2	0.2	1.7	1.7	1.4	1.0
Belgium	0.2	0.2	0.1	0.2	1.0	1.0	0.9	0.8
Bulgaria	0.8	0.7	0.7	0.7	3.3	3.1	2.9	2.9
Czechia	0.4	0.8	0.7	0.2	2.6	2.8	2.7	2.1
Denmark	1.2	2.3	0.2	:	2.0	4.0	3.1	:
Germany	-0.2	0.0	0.2	0.3	0.4	0.3	0.4	0.3
Estonia	0.7	0.1	-0.1	0.6	0.7	1.0	0.8	1.3
Ireland***	-0.6	0.0	-3.8	-2.0	18.1	11.1	3.0	-6.3
Greece	0.5	0.7	0.8	:	1.7	2.1	2.4	:
Spain	0.7	0.6	0.8	0.6	2.9	2.7	2.6	2.7
France	0.4	0.6	0.2	0.0	0.8	1.0	1.3	1.1
Croatia	0.9	0.5	1.5	:	3.5	2.9	3.6	:
Italy	0.0	0.2	0.3	0.2	0.4	0.7	0.9	0.7
Cyprus	0.7	0.8	1.2	0.2	3.7	3.6	4.3	3.0
Latvia	0.4	0.8	0.6	:	1.7	2.3	2.5	:
Lithuania	0.7	0.3	1.9	-0.4	3.2	2.2	3.3	2.5
Luxembourg	0.6	1.2	-0.1	:	-0.6	3.2	2.4	:
Hungary	0.6	0.1	0.2	0.8	0.4	0.9	0.7	1.7
Malta	1.7	1.1	2.1	:	2.5	3.8	6.4	:
Netherlands**	0.3	0.5	0.4	0.1	1.6	1.7	1.8	1.2
Austria	0.0	0.3	0.0	0.2	0.7	1.1	0.7	0.6
Poland	0.9	1.2	1.1	:	2.9	4.2	3.9	:
Portugal	0.7	0.6	0.9	0.0	1.7	2.2	1.9	2.3
Romania	0.7	0.0	-2.0	-0.2	2.1	1.4	-1.5	-1.5
Slovenia	0.9	0.9	0.4	:	1.0	1.8	1.6	:
Slovakia	0.2	0.3	0.2	0.2	0.7	0.9	0.8	0.9
Finland**	-0.1	-0.1	0.3	0.9	0.1	-0.2	0.1	1.3
Sweden**	0.9	0.7	0.4	-0.2	2.2	2.6	2.1	1.6
Iceland	-1.0	1.3	-0.8	:	-0.8	1.2	2.6	:
Norway	1.0	1.3	-0.3	:	0.1	2.2	2.2	:
Switzerland	0.1	-0.4	0.1	:	1.5	0.6	0.5	:
United States	0.9	1.1	0.1	0.5	2.1	2.3	2.0	2.7
: Data not available * Growth rates to the previous quarter and to the same quarter of the previous year presented in this table are both based on seasonally and calendar adjusted figures, except where indicated. Unadjusted data are not available for all Member States which are included in GDP flash estimates. Percentage change compared with the same quarter of the previous year calculated from calendar adjusted data. * Irish GDP flash estimate is categorised as a CSO Frontier Series Output . Particular care must be taken when interpreting the statistics as it may use new methods which are under development and/or data sources which may be incomplete, for example new administrative data sources. Source datasets: namq_10_gdp

Notes for users

Revisions

Revisions of quarterly GDP estimates are continuously monitored. Further information can be found on Eurostat website.

With these flash estimates, euro area and EU employment and GDP figures for earlier quarters are not revised.

The flash GDP estimates of the first quarter 2026 are based on Member States’ data covering 99% of the euro area and 96% of the EU GDP, while flash employment estimates are based on Member States’ data covering 93% of the euro area and 91% of the EU total employment.

A preliminary flash estimate of GDP growth was published in the Euro indicators release issued on 30 April 2026. This was based on GDP estimates for 19 Member States.

The euro area and EU estimates of GDP for the last quarter were revised as presented in the following table:

GDP growth rate estimates	To the previous quarter (Q/Q-1)		To the previous year (Q/Q-4)
GDP growth rate estimates	Previous	Current	Previous	Current
GDP euro area 21	0.1	0.1	0.8	0.8
GDP euro area 20	0.1	0.1	0.8	0.8
GDP EU	0.1	0.2	1.0	1.0

All figures presented in this release may be revised with Eurostat’s regular estimates of GDP and main aggregates (including employment) scheduled for 5 June 2026 and 20 July 2026.

Release schedule

Comprehensive estimates of European main aggregates (including GDP and employment) are based on countries regular transmissions and published around 65 and 110 days after the end of each quarter. To improve the timeliness of key indicators, Eurostat also publishes flash estimates for GDP (after around 30 and 45 days) and employment (after around 45 days). Their compilation is based on estimates provided by EU Member States on a voluntary basis.

This release presents flash estimates for euro area and EU GDP and employment growth after around 45 days.

Methods and definitions

European quarterly national accounts are compiled in accordance with the European System of Accounts 2010 (ESA 2010). They include key policy indicators of GDP and employment.

Gross domestic product (GDP) at market prices measures the production activity of resident production units. Growth rates are based on chain-linked volumes.

Employment covers employees and self-employed working in resident production units (domestic concept). While employment flash estimates are limited to total employment in persons, regular estimates also cover hours worked and industry breakdowns.

The method used for compilation of European GDP and employment estimates is the same as for previous releases.

Geographical information

Up to 31 December 2025, the euro area included Belgium, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Slovenia, Slovakia and Finland (EA20). From 1 January 2026, the euro area also includes Bulgaria (EA21).

The aggregate data series commented on in this Euro indicator release refer to the official composition of the euro area in the most recent month for which data are available. Thus, Euro indicator releases with data for months up to December 2025 commented on EA20 series, while releases with data for January 2026 onwards comment on EA21 series.

European Union: Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Finland and Sweden (EU27).

For more information

Website section on national accounts, notably information on European GDP and employment estimates

Database section on national accounts and metadata on quarterly national accounts
Statistics Explained articles on measuring quarterly GDP and presentation of updated quarterly estimates
Country specific metadata
European System of Accounts 2010
Euro indicators dashboard
Release calendar for Euro indicators
European Statistics Code of Practice