Euro area GDP expands at 0.6% pace in Q2

Economic growth in the single currency bloc picked-up slightly during the latest quarter, as expected.

The Eurozone's gross domestic product expanded at a 0.6% quarter-on-quarter pace over the three months to June, a tenth of a percentage point quicker than over the prior three months, according to Eurostat.

In comparison to the year-ago period, euro area GDP accelerated from a 1.9% year-on-year clip in the first quarter of 2017 to 2.1%.

Growth in the wider in the European Union also quickened, from 2.1% during the quarter ending in March to 2.2% over the latest three-month stretch.

Commenting on the balance-of-risks to the outlook for growth in the euro area, economists at Barclays Research described it as "broadly balanced".

To the downside, the 7% run-up in the single currency's trade-weighted value since mid-April was the most obvious risk, they said.

That, they said, would loom large over the deliberations of the European Central Bank's Governing Council on what the backdrop for its policy decisions in 2018 might be.

The biggest downside risk from within the single currency area was Italy, Barclays added, which they still expected to hold elections in the first quarter of 2018.

On a more positive note, the investment bank believed the possibility existed that investment could outstrip their projections, should corporate profits improve further, alongside higher confidence.

That, it said, was especially true in France.

"The likely acceleration of the reform agenda under President Macron could swiftly translate into further improvement in business profit margins and confidence."