Growth spurt for euro area

The eurozone economy picked up momentum at the end of last year, with Germany reasserting itself as the driver of growth, offsetting weakness in Greece and Italy.

Gross domestic product rose 0.3% in the fourth quarter after expanding 0.2% in the previous three months, the EU’s statistics office in Luxembourg said yesterday.

Analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News predicted growth of 0.2%. The Greek economy unexpectedly shrank 0.2%. While the currency bloc’s economy is overcoming its longest-ever slump, falling consumer prices and the rise to power of an anti-austerity party in Greece have increased the risks to growth.