Eurozone slump enters sixth quarter

The recession across the eurozone extended into its sixth quarter – longer than the slump that hit the region during the financial crisis of 2008-9.

Eurostat, the EU’s statistics office, said that nine of the 17 eurozone countries are in recession, with France a notable addition to the list. Overall, the eurozone economy contracted 0.2% in the January-March period from the previous quarter.