The Greek economy shrunk at the least in nearly six years during the three months ended June, in a sign that the painfully-long recession may be nearing an end, figures from the Hellenic Statistical Authority showed Wednesday.
Gross domestic product, or GDP, fell 0.2 percent year-over-year in the second quarter of 2014. It was slower than the 0.5 percent fall expected by economists.
This marked the slowest rate of decrease since the third quarter of 2008, when the economy contracted 0.1 percent, marking the start of the severe recession.
The pace of contraction eased for the fifth straight quarter. GDP declined 1.1 percent in the first three months of 2014 and 4 percent in the second quarter of last year.
Greece had to be rescued twice by international lenders during its financial crisis, which was so severe that it led to speculation of the country leaving Eurozone.
At current prices, the GDP fell 2.5 percent in the second quarter following the 3.9 percent decrease in the previous three months.
The statistical agency does not release seasonally adjusted figures and quarter-on-quarter data.
In April , the International Monetary Fund projected 0.6 percent growth for Greece this year and 2.9 percent for 2015. In 2013, the economy shrank 3.9 percent.
"Greece's Q2 GDP release suggests that the economy is slowly emerging from the abyss," Capital Economics European Economist James Howat said.
"But growth remains too weak for the country to reduce its huge public debt without significantly more outside help."
The European Commission expects Greece's public debt to peak at 177.2 percent of GDP this year, rising from 175.1 percent in 2013. The ratio is forecast to ease slightly to 172.4 percent next year.
Tourism receipts likely performed strongly during the second quarter, while industry probably contracted, Capital Economics' Howat said.
Official data revealed that industrial production declined sharply in June and retail sales dropped in May. That said, unemployment eased in May after remaining stable for three consecutive months. Yet, joblessness remains high at 27.2 percent.
The purchasing managers' survey showed that manufacturing activity shrunk for the second straight month in July. Demand growth eased at an accelerated rate and staffing levels decreased in July.
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