The beginning of the recession in the European Union
In France, in early January 2008 a scandal surrounding the bank Société Générale, a trader who in 2007 with the use of margin trading opened positions on European stock exchanges indexes, totaling some 50 billion euros, which is approximately 1.5 times the bank's capitalization. As a result of a sharp fall in stock markets, the open positions have losses of about 5 billion euros. January 18, 2008 declared a fraudulent transaction, and all positions were closed, triggering a wave of sales on the stock markets.
In Denmark, the decline in GDP amounted to 0,6% in the first quarter of 2008. Estonia showed decline 0.9% in the second quarter after 0.5% in the first, as a result of the country absorbed a recession. In Latvia, the fall of 0,2% in the second quarter after 0.3% in the first, as a result had also been a recession. Sweden showed zero growth in the second quarter. Economics of the European Union declined by 0.1% in the second quarter.
In the eurozone as a whole, industrial production fell by 1,9 percent in May, is the largest fall since the crisis of 1992. Sales of European cars fell by 7.8% in May compared with the previous year. Retail sales fell 0.6% in June compared to May and by 3,1% compared with the previous year. Germany was the only country of the four largest economies in the euro area, which recorded an increase in production in July, although the size and growth fell sharply. In the second quarter of the volume of euro-zone economy declined by 0.2 percent.
Ireland during the first quarter of 2008 reported a reduction in GDP by 1,5%, this was a record decline since 1983. However, the Central Statistical Office Ireland reported GDP growth of about 0,8%, in Ireland, the Government considers a more accurate indication of GNP determine the state of the economy. Ireland's GDP declined in the second quarter to 0,5%, resulting in Ireland the first euro-area members, which went into recession.
Spanish construction company Martinsa-Fadesa filed for bankruptcy because it failed to refinance debt at 5.1 billion euros. In the second quarter, real estate prices in Spain fell 20 percent. In the region of Castilla - La Mancha is still not sold approximately 69% of all buildings constructed over the past three years. Deutsche Bank expects 35-percent drop in property prices in Spain in 2011. Prime Minister of Spain Jose Luis Zapatero, blamed the European Central Bank in exacerbating the situation for raising interest rates.
Although Spain has avoided recession in the first half of 2008, unemployment in the country increased by 425,000 over the past year, reaching 9,9%. Car sales in Spain fell by 31% in May. The decline in production has reached 5.5% in May. Lower retail sales in Spain reached 7.9% in June compared with the previous year. In June, sales of food products decreased by 6,8%. According to the Association of Spanish car producers ANFAC, new car sales in July fell by 27.5% compared with the previous year. In the second quarter of Spain's economy grew by 0,1%, which is the lowest level in 15 years.
In Germany, retail sales fell 1.4% in June 2008, in the second quarter of Germanic economy showed decline of 0.5 percent.
In Italy, Fiat announced plant closures and layoffs at factories in Turin, Melfi, Imola and Sicily. The Italian economy contracted by 0.3% in the second quarter of 2008.
In the Netherlands, industrial output in May fell by 6%.
Other members of the eurozone met downturn in their economy in the second quarter: The French economy contracted by 0.3%, Finland's economy declined by 0.2% in the Netherlands showed zero growth in the second quarter. /p>
September 28, the Netherlands-Belgian bank Fortis was partially nationalized with a cash infusion from the Benelux countries that make up the € 11,2 billion. In June, the company announced the sale of discounted assets to get the € 5 billion to improve the liquidity of the organization. However, this was not enough.
October 9, 2008 Finance Minister of the United Kingdom A. Darling used the powers granted to government anti-terrorism law Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 to freeze assets of Icelandic bank Landsbanki Islands hf in the country. The crisis in the UK, according to political observers, contributed to the fall of 2008 a significant increase in ratings of Prime Minister Brown, whose actions are aimed at saving the banking system, promotion of business and demand have been approved in Britain, so the leadership of other countries. January 23, 2009 National Statistical Office of Great Britain reported that in the fourth quarter of 2008 UK GDP fell by 1.5% compared with the previous quarter, which meant that the formal entry of the British economy in recession, UK: GDP decline in the fourth quarter of 2008 amounted to 1,5% in the third quarter of that year the decline was 0.6%.
In early December 2008 the European Union Statistical Office reported that eurozone GDP in the third quarter of 2008 decreased by 0,2%, as in the previous quarter: Europe's economy went into recession for the first time in 15 years.
According to Eurostat, published in February 2009, industrial production in the European Union in December 2008 decreased by 11,5% in annual terms and 2.3% compared with November, in the eurozone - the 12% and 2.6% respectively that is an absolute record: such was not observed since 1986, when the project began operating a pan-European statistics.