Austria registers biggest economic slump since World War II

Austria’s economy registered the biggest slump since World War II in the second quarter of 2020, according to a report published by an independent and non-profit federal institution here on Monday.

Austria’s gross domestic product (GDP) dropped by 12.1 percent in volume terms during the second quarter of 2020 compared with the first quarter and fell 14.3 percent year-on-year, Statistics Austria said in a report published on its website.

“This is the sharpest decline since World War II,” said co-director general Tobias Thomas of Statistics Austria.

The accommodation and gastronomy sector has born the brunt of COVID-19 lockdowns, with a real decline of 61.1 percent compared with the same quarter of the previous year and 65.2 percent compared with the previous quarter, according to the report.

It is followed by the entertainment and culture sector, which fell 35.3 percent year-on-year and 27.0 percent from the previous quarter.

Foreign trade has also been hit hard.

In the months from April to June, imports and exports fell 17.4 percent and 18.1 percent year-on-year separately and dropped both by 13.2 percent compared with the first three months of 2020.

China, the United States and Switzerland were the most important non-EU trading partners for the Alpine country in terms of imports and exports in 2019, according to Statistics Austria.