Exports pull eurozone out of recession in Q2

A bounce in exports and spending pulled the eurozone out of recession in the second quarter of 2013, data shows, in the first signs of recovery after the bloc’s longest slump.

Stronger-than-expected growth from Germany to Portugal helped the bloc’s economy expand 0.3% in the April-June period, the EU’s statistics office Eurostat said yesterday in its first breakdown of the data.

Exports to the rest of the world rose sharply in the quarter after six months of falling sales, while government spending made its first positive contribution to the economy since late 2009 when Greece plunged the eurozone into crisis.