Austrian Economy Still Weak At Present

Economic output stagnated in the fourth quarter of 2014 compared with the previous quarter, according to WIFO Quarterly National Accounts. Compared with a year before, the decline was 0.2 percent. For 2014 as a whole, economic growth was 0.3 percent. The slight increase in the impetus provided by foreign trade towards the end of 2014 was too small to be able to offset the weakness in domestic demand. The picture painted by leading indicators, which has been bleak for quite some time now, darkened further. Against this background, economic momentum is likely to remain lacklustre also in the first quarter of 2015, notwithstanding the low levels of crude oil prices seen recently.